#RNLI - Baltimore RNLI assisted two sailors yesterday afternoon (Friday 14 July) after their motorboat broke down off the coast of West Cork.

The volunteer crew was requested to launch their inshore lifeboat at 2.25pm following a report from the sailors that their vessel had got into difficulty off Toe Head.

Helmed by Youen Jacob and with crew members Pat O’Mahony and Colin Rochford on board, the lifeboat launched immediately and was on scene in 25 minutes.

The 22ft motorboat had broken down half a mile west of Toe Head and had secured an anchor. Weather conditions at the time were relatively good, with a Force 3-4 south-westerly wind and a sea swell of 2-3m.

The lifeboat crew established a tow and brought the vessel safely back to Baltimore Harbour before returning to the station at 4.35pm.

“The sailors did the right thing today requesting assistance when required,” said Baltimore RNLI lifeboat operations manager Tom Bushe. “We would remind everyone enjoying our coast this summer to always respect the water.”

Shore crew in attendance at the station were Rianne and Jerry Smith, Kate Callanan, Marty O’Driscoll and Aidan Bushe.

#RNLI - Union Hall RNLI went to the aid of a yacht with two people onboard yesterday evening (Thursday 13 July) after the vessel got into difficulty half a mile east of Castlehaven Harbour in West Cork.

The volunteer lifeboat crew was alerted at 5.26pm by Valentia Coast Guard to reports of a 28ft yacht that had fouled its propeller.

The lifeboat was launched and on scene within 20 minutes. Weather conditions at the time were good and the sea was calm.

Two whale watching boats, Voyager and Liscannor Star, stood by the casualty vessel until the lifeboat crew arrived and worked with the two men onboard to attach a tow line to the yacht.



The lifeboat then towed the yacht to the safety of Reen Pier before returning to Union Hall, joined by a pod of dolphins along the way.

Speaking following the callout, Union Hall RNLI deputy launching authority Peter Deasy said: “We were happy to assist the sailors this evening on what was the first callout for our only female crew member, Sarah Browne.”

#RNLI - Red Bay RNLI rescued a woman who fell while climbing Fair Head in Co Antrim yesterday afternoon (Wednesday 12 July).

The volunteer crew launched their inshore lifeboat around 2pm following a request from Belfast Coastguard to go to the scene north-east of Ballycastle.

The shore-based Ballycastle Coastguard rescue team also made their way to the location, while the coastguard helicopter from Prestwick was additionally tasked.

Weather conditions at the time were described as good, with sunny weather and calm seas.

Once on scene, the lifeboat transferred two of its crew members who went ashore to assess the casualty, who had sustained a leg injury. 

The crew then began to administer casualty care and worked to reassure the injured woman until the arrival of a paramedic from the rescue helicopter. 

The woman was airlifted to Belfast City Airport and transferred to the Royal Victoria Hospital for treatment.

Speaking following the callout, Red Bay RNLI volunteer lifeboat press officer Paddy McLaughlin said: “We would like to wish the woman a speedy recovery from her injury and thank our colleagues in the coastguard who we worked with to bring her to safety.

“As the summer continues, we want to encourage the public to enjoy everything the coast has to offer but we want them to come home safely.

“Fair Head is a popular spot for climbers but it is remotely located and can be challenging so walkers and hikers alike need to go prepared with the right clothing, equipment and training and take extreme care.

“We would remind anyone planning a trip to or near the sea to respect the water and be wary of all edges around the sea. Always let someone know where you are going and when you expect to be back. 

“Always carry a means of communication and should you get into difficulty use it to call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.”

In this bicentenary year of Dun Laoghaire harbour, the visit from three vintage lifeboats to Dun Laoghaire at the weekend served to highlight the RNLI's contribution to lifesaving from Dun Laoghaire Harbour since 1861 and also to celebrate the lifeboat stations annual Open Day.

There has been an unbroken record of lifeboats launching on service since 1803 when the first was stationed at Sandycove harbour on Dublin Bay.

The vintage lifeboats at Dun Laoghaire Marina

#RNLI - Lough Ree RNLI assisted 30 people aboard seven vessels during an exceptionally busy few days for the volunteers last week.

The crew of inshore lifeboat The Eric Rowse had an early start last on Sunday 2 July when they were dispatched to assist two people on board a motor cruiser aground west of Inch McDermott at 5.40am.

Over the course of the day, the lifeboat crew diverted from the Athlone RNLI River Festival several times to assist a further 16 people and three vessels experiencing various difficulties including running aground, engine failure and running out of fuel.

The lifeboat was called out again on Tuesday 4, Thursday 6 and Friday 7 July to assist a further 12 people aboard three motor cruisers in difficulty.

In all cases, the people on board were uninjured and were brought to safety by the lifeboat volunteers.

Speaking on Friday, Lough Ree RNLI Deputy Launching Authority Billy Henshaw said: “This is the busiest time of year on the lake, and it is great to see so many people enjoying all that Lough Ree has to offer. 

“We would like to remind all users of the lake to ensure they stay SAFE: Spot the dangers, take Advice, inform a Friend of your plans and know what to do in an Emergency.

“It is also important to remain aware of where you are in relation to navigation markers.”

#RNLI - Baltimore RNLI’s volunteer lifeboat crew has responded to three callouts over the last four days.

The first of the three was a medical evacuation from Cape Clear on Friday (7 July).

A woman from the island was suffering from chest pains and needed to be transferred to the mainland, where she was met by a waiting ambulance at the lifeboat station.

The lifeboat was crewed by Kieran Cotter, Sean McCarthy, Cathal Cottrell, Aidan Bushe and Don O’Donovan.

The following night (Saturday 8 July), the lifeboat carried out another medevac, this time from Sherkin Island after man suffered a serious fall from a height and required medical assistance. 

The lifeboat crew were assisted on the island by a team led by Dr Jason from West Cork Rapid Response. 

The casualty was evacuated to Baltimore, where an ambulance was waiting at the lifeboat station for transfer to hospital in Cork. 

Crew on this callout were Kieran Cotter, Pat Collins, Jerry Smith, Don O’Donovan, Brian McSweeney, Jim Griffiths and Ronnie Carthy.

Finally, yesterday morning (Sunday 9 July) Baltimore RNLI’s inshore lifeboat was launched to go to the assistance of a RIB which had broken down off Cape Clear.

Mícheál Cottrell, a helm and crewman with Baltimore RNLI, was out with his sea safari boat on a tour with passengers when he happened upon the boat, with two people onboard, which was suffering engine problems.

Cottrell raised the alarm and Baltimore’s inshore lifeboat was requested to assist. 

The lifeboat took the boat in tow to Baltimore, where it was berthed safely and the lifeboat returned to station. 

Crew on the inshore lifeboat were helm Youen Jacob, David Ryan and Ryan O’Mahony. 

Shore crew in assistance at Baltimore Lifeboat Station were Declan Tiernan, Sean McCarthy, Rianne Smith and Marty O’Driscoll.

The Coast Guard has recovered the bodies of two men from the water in Co Donegal yesterday. One man was in his 50s and the other man was in his 40s.

The incident occurred off Malinbeg, Glencolmcille, Co Donegal.

Whilst on exercise to Mullaghmore yesterday morning, the volunteer crew of the Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat responded to a pan-pan emergency call from Malin Head Coast Guard at 11.40am. A five metre RIB had been found at Malin Beg near Glencolmcille, County Donegal and one person was missing.

At around 12:15pm, the Bundoran Lifeboat began a shore search from Teelin towards Malin Beg Head. The Sligo based Rescue 118 helicopter was on scene at Malin Beg Head with the all-weather lifeboat from Arranmore also requested to launch. A shore crew from the Killybegs Coast Guard unit was also tasked.

Following notification from Rescue 118 that a casualty had been spotted in the water at Malin Mor, the lifeboat crew made their way to the scene and recovered a casualty just before 1pm.

The casualty was brought to Teelin Pier and transferred into the care of the emergency services where he was pronounced dead by a local doctor.

#RNLI - Larne RNLI responded to two consecutive calls for help off the Antrim coast yesterday afternoon (Saturday 8 July).

The volunteer lifeboat crew was requested to launch their all-weather and inshore lifeboats at 2.17pm after Belfast Coastguard reported that a red survival suit was seen floating on the water.

Weather conditions were described as good at the time with clear visibility. Beaches were busy and there were several boats on the water.

The all-weather lifeboat under coxswain Chris Dorman and the inshore lifeboat helmed by Pamela Leitch launched and made their way to the area two miles south east of Hunter’s Buoy. 

Together the lifeboats conducted a parallel search north for two miles in the direction of the tide before the inshore lifeboat crew spotted the object one mile into the search and recovered what turned out to be a fishing floatation suit from the water.

On passage back to Larne at approximately 3.15pm, the lifeboats were requested a second time by the coastguard, this time to follow up a report from a member of the public that a blue kayak had been spotted out of Portmuck Harbour. 

The crew proceeded to the area and conducted a search but no one or nothing was found. The lifeboats were stood down on the understanding that the callout was a false alarm with good intent.

Larne RNLI coxswain Chris Dorman later commented: “While today’s call outs didn’t involve people being rescued, we would remind anyone who is enjoying the good weather and taking to the sea for activities at this busy part of the summer season to always respect the water. 

“Plan your trip carefully mindful of the weather and tide times. Always wear a lifejacket and carry a means of communication. If you happen to lose a piece of equipment or clothing, please report it and should you or someone you see get into difficulty call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard.”

Earlier this week Larne RNLI were called to rescue two men on a yacht stranded by a fouled propeller, as previously reported on Afloat.ie.

Fethard RNLI launched its inshore lifeboat yesterday evening (Thursday 6 July) to conduct a search after a member of the public reported seeing a kayak floating in the sea off Duncannon Beach in County Wexford.

The volunteer crew was requested to launch their inshore lifeboat at 7.50pm. They quickly assembled at the station and the lifeboat immediately proceeded to an area north of Broom Hill to carry out a search.

Weather conditions at the time were good with a light northerly Force 3 wind and a slight to moderate sea.

The crew located the kayak with no one onboard before continuing a search from Broomhill north to Duncannon, west to Woodstown, and back south to Creaden Head and east to Templetown. This was followed by a search from Templetown to Dollar Bay.

Meanwhile, the Fethard Coast Guard unit carried out a search of the shore while the Irish Coast Guard helicopter, Rescue 117 from Waterford conducted a search from the air.

The search was stood down after it was confirmed that the owner of the kayak had been safely located after swimming back to shore.

Speaking following the call out, Hugh Burke, Fethard RNLI Deputy Launching Authority said: ‘While the call out turned out to be a false alarm with good intent, we would like to commend the member of the public who raised the alarm when they saw the kayak. They thought someone was in difficulty and that was absolutely the right thing to do.
‘The search proved to be a great example of interagency work between ourselves and our colleagues in the Irish Coast Guard.
‘We would remind anyone planning a trip to sea this summer to always respect the water. Always wear a lifejacket and carry a means of communication. Should you get into difficulty call 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard. If you lose a kayak or a board, please report it to the Coast Guard or the Gardaí.’

#RNLI - Skerries RNLI launched on Wednesday afternoon (5 July) after the coastguard received a report from lifeguards on Rush beach of swimmers in difficulty some 500 metres off shore and at risk of being pulled out to sea. 

The Skerries lifeboat launched with volunteer David Knight at the helm and crewed by Ian Guildea, AJ Hughes and JP Tanner to check on the group.

The crew made their way towards Rush and began a search of the area. After stopping to speak to a group of kayakers, it became apparent that the lifeguards on the beach had mistaken them for a group of swimmers.

Once it was established that there was nobody in danger, the lifeboat was stood down and returned to Skerries.

Speaking about the callout, Skerries RNLI lifeboat press officer  Gerry Canning said: “In this case it was a false alarm with good intent. But we would remind everyone, if you see someone in trouble in the water, dial 999 and ask for the coastguard.”