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AfloatDigi 2018 CHMarine SafetySection

Search & Rescue, Water Safety - News from the Marine Safety Agencies
The medical evacuation of a fisherman  took place 20 miles south of Ballycotton Lighthouse
Ballycotton RNLI launched in the early hours of this morning (Wednesday 10 May) to assist in the medical evacuation of a fisherman 20 miles south of Ballycotton Lighthouse. The volunteer lifeboat crew was requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat by…
Baltimore RNLI's Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat
#RNLI - A week of engine troubles around the Irish coast continued yesterday morning (Tuesday 9 May) when Baltimore RNLI went to the aid of a fishing boat on passage from France to Kerry. The lifeboat launched to the vessel…
Irish Coast Guard Airlifts Sailor From Royal Navy Submarine
#Coastguard - The Irish Coast Guard has airlifted a sailor with leg injuries from a Royal Navy submarine off the West Coast of Ireland, as The Irish Times reports. Sligo’s Rescue 118 helicopter was dispatched to the scene some 277km…
Skerries RNLI Launches To Motor Boat In Difficulty
#RNLI - Skerries RNLI assisted a motor boat with two men aboard that was experiencing engine difficulties at Rockabill Lighthouse on Sunday afternoon (7 May). Dublin Coast Guard tasked Skerries RNLI shortly after 12.30pm after receiving a call from a…
Pictured on their new D class lifeboat Dennis-Audrey are crew members Connie O’Gara, helm Alan Goucher, Dean Mulvihill and Paul Sillery with donor representative Michelle Gavin, David Delamer, chair of the Irish Council of the RNLI, Des Davitt, Wicklow RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager and Owen Medland, RNLI Area Lifesaving Manager.
At a special ceremony held yesterday (Saturday 6 May), Wicklow RNLI officially named its new D class lifeboat, Dennis-Audrey. David Delamer, chair of the RNLI Council in Ireland, accepted the lifeboat on behalf of the RNLI before handing her over…
Portaferry RNLI's Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat
#RNLI - The volunteer lifeboat crew at Portaferry RNLI responded for the second time in 48 hours to a launch request yesterday evening (Thursday 4 May) to go to the aid of five men on board a 7m yacht experiencing…
Rosslare Harbour’s all-weather lifeboat establishes a tow with the troubled yacht off the Wicklow coast
#RNLI - Rosslare Harbour RNLI assisted three men onboard a yacht yesterday evening (Wednesday 3 May) after it got into difficulty off the Wicklow coast. The all-weather lifeboat, under coxswain Eamonn O’Rourke and with six volunteer crew members onboard, launched…
Arklow RNLI was first requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat for a 23ft yacht was in difficulty somewhere near Arklow Bank
Arklow RNLI responded to three consecutive call outs yesterday evening (Wednesday 3 May) bringing three yachts with eight onboard, safely to shore. The volunteer crew who spent six hours at sea, was first requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat shortly…
The lifeboat which went on service in February this year was funded by Gladys Audrey Deakin
A new inshore lifeboat for Wicklow RNLI is to be officially named Dennis-Audrey during a ceremony at the lifeboat station at 4pm this Saturday 6 May. The lifeboat which went on service in February this year was funded by Gladys…
Howth RNLI's all-weather lifeboat prepares to tow the stranded yacht to safety
#RNLI - Howth RNLI launched its all-weather and inshore lifeboats yesterday (Monday 1 May) to reports of a sailing yacht with steering failure at the entrance to Malahide Estuary. The inshore lifeboat was first on scene and located the casualty…
Surfer Rescued Off Northern Irish Coast After 30 Hours At Sea
#Rescue - A surfer was rescued from the sea off Northern Ireland yesterday evening (Monday 1 May) after more than 30 hours in the water. Belfast Coastguard co-ordinated the search for the missing man who had gone surfing near Campbeltown…
Lough Ree RNLI’s inshore lifeboat The Eric Rowse
#RNLI - Just hours after attending a grounded barge at the northern end of the lough, the volunteer crew of Lough Ree RNLI were back on the water yesterday morning (Sunday 30 April) to assist a motor cruiser with seven…
The Shannon-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 115
#Coastguard - Late last night (Sunday 30 April) the Irish Coast Guard’s Shannon-based helicopter Rescue 115 was involved in a medevac mission from Tralee to Dublin. The coastguard crew collected the patient from University Hospital Kerry and flew them to…
Baltimore RNLI’s inshore lifeboat Alice and Charles
#RNLI - Baltimore RNLI’s inshore lifeboat was launched on Saturday night (29 May) to assist a boat that had broken from its moorings in Baltimore Harbour. Concerned for the safety of a person seen trying to access the boat from…
Lough Ree RNLI assisting the 56ft barge near Blackwood Point
#RNLI - Lough Ree RNLI’s lifeboat crew were alerted by the Irish Coast Guard yesterday morning (Saturday 29 April) when a 56ft barge with three people on board ran hard aground on rocks close to Blackwood Point, at the northern…
Wicklow RNLI’s all-weather lifeboat
#RNLI - Wicklow RNLI's all-weather lifeboat launched at 10.52am yesterday morning (Saturday 29 April) to search the bay for a missing fisherman. The lifeboat, under the command of coxswain Nick Keogh with a volunteer crew, proceeded north to the fisherman’s…

Every Year Ireland's Search & Rescue Services deliver emergency life saving work on our seas, lakes and rivers.

Ireland's Water Safety Agencies work hard to provide us with the information we need to keep safe, while enjoying all manner of water based activities.

There's no better fun than getting out on the water but being afloat is a responsibility we all need to take seriously.

These pages detail the work of the rescue agencies. We also aim to promote safety standards among pleasure boaters, and by doing so, prevent, as far as possible, the loss of life at sea and on inland waters. If you have ideas for our pages we'd love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected]

Think Before You Sink - Wear a Lifejacket

Accidents can happen fast on water and there may not be time to reach for a lifejacket in an emergency therefore don't just carry a lifejacket - wear it; if it's not on you, it can't save your life.

Irish Water Safety's Safe Boating Alert:

Check condition of boat and equipment, hull, engine, fuel, tools, torch.

Check the weather forecast for the area.

Check locally concerning dangerous currents and strong tides.

Do not drink alcohol while setting out or during your trip.

Carry an alternative means of propulsion e.g. sails and oars or motor and oars.

Carry a first aid kit on board and distress signals (at least two parachute distress rockets, two red hand flares).

Carry a fire extinguisher, a hand bailer or bucket with lanyard and an anchor with rope attached.

Carry marine radio or some means of communication with shore.

Do not overload the boat - this will make it unstable.

Do not set out unless accompanied by an experienced person.

Leave details of your planned trip with someone ashore - including departure and arrival times, description of boat, names of persons on board, etc.

Wear a Lifejacket at all times.

Keep an eye on the weather - seek shelter in good time.

In Marine Emergencies, call 999 or 112 and ask for Marine Rescue.

Lifejackets Checklist

Ensure Cartridges have not been punctured and are secured firmly.

Ensure all zips, buckles, fasteners and webbing straps are functioning correctly and adjusted to fit the user.

Check that fitted lights are operating correctly.

Ensure that Automatic Inflation devices are fully serviced and in date.

Check that the valve or lifejacket is not leaking.