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AfloatDigi 2018 CHMarine SafetySection

Search & Rescue, Water Safety - News from the Marine Safety Agencies
Rescue 116 pictured over Wicklow in August 2015
#Rescue116 - The interim report from the investigation into the Rescue 116 tragedy has found that the Irish Coast Guard helicopter “pitched up rapidly” in its final seconds before crashing off Co Mayo a month ago. Data recovered from the…
Fethard RNLI's current inshore lifeboat Tradewinds will be replaced later this year
#RNLI - Following its successful fundraising appeal, which saw locals raise the €65,000 needed to fund a new lifeboat, Fethard RNLI is asking the community to choose the name of their new lifesaving vessel. The naming of an RNLI lifeboat…
RNLI Lifeguards
RNLI lifeguards will return to five Causeway Coast beaches to provide cover during this year’s Easter holidays. Commencing this Good Friday (14 April), lifeguards will be operating from Beach Lifeguard Units on Benone Strand, Portstewart Strand, East and West Strands…
Volunteers on the inshore lifeboat Louis Simson bring the male swimmer back to shore for treatment
#RNLI - Skerries RNLI rescued a swimmer in difficulty yesterday afternoon (Tuesday 11 April) after he encountered a strong tide near Shenick Island and was unable to make his way ashore. Dublin Coast Guard tasked Skerries RNLI shortly before noon…
Bangor's inshore lifeboat escorts the yacht from Girvan into Bangor Marina on Monday 10 April
#RNLI - A volunteer crew from Bangor RNLI was tasked with helping a yacht with three people and a dog on passage from Girvan in Western Scotland to Bangor Marina yesterday (Monday 10 April). The yacht had a fouled prop…
Rescue 116 – the hope is that with the extensive monitoring both at sea and on shore that the remains of missing crew Paul and Ciaran would be found
After four weeks searching for missing crew of Coastguard Rescue Helicopter 116, the Air Accident Investigation Unit and An Garda Síochána in conjunction with Coast Guard have expressed their sincere appreciation to the Commissioners of Irish Lights (CIL) and Marine Institute…
Skerries RNLI rescue the man and woman and their two dogs from Loughshinny on Sunday night
#RNLI - Skerries RNLI rescued a man and a woman and two dogs on Sunday evening (9 April) after they had been stranded on rocks by the rising tide in Loughshinny. Dublin Coast Guard tasked Skerries RNLI shortly before 9pm…
Bangor’s lifeboat crew retrieving one of the paddleboards after Saturday’s rescue
#RNLI - At the end of a busy week for Bangor RNLI, the Belfast Lough volunteer crew launched to the rescue of two young paddleboarders who had got into difficulty just outside Ballyholme Bay yesterday (Saturday 8 April). Launching just…
A screen grab showing boats involved in this morning's #R116 search off the Mayo coast
The Coast Guard Rescue Coordination Centre in Malin is managing the surface search for the two missing crewmen of Rescue 116 this morning with a reported large number of fishing vessels that have offered their services. The search is being…
Rescue 116 went down at Black Rock off the Mullet Peninsula on 14 March
#Rescue116 - The Coast Guard Rescue Coordination Centre in Malin will tomorrow (Saturday 8 April) assist with managing the surface search for the two missing crewmen of Rescue 116 by a large number of fishing vessels that have offered their…
Coast Guard Helicopter R116 – the search for two missing crew continues
Remote Operations Vehicle (ROV) operations, conducted by Marine Institute specialists on-board the Granuaile in conjunction with An Garda Síochána and the Air Accident Investigation Unit continued overnight and are ongoing. Wind has freshened overnight, which may constrain certain elements of the…
St. Helier lifeboat on Jersey
All 25 members of the St Helier Lifeboat crew on Jersey have resigned along with five members of the admin & management team. It follows a meeting between the boats Coxswain, Andy Hibbs and the RNLI yesterday where he was asked…
The new Head of Maritime Operations, Julie-Anne Wood
The Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s new Head of Maritime Operations, Julie-Anne Wood, has made history by becoming the first woman to achieve this rank in the history of Her Majesty’s Coastguard. The role of Head of Maritime Operations heads up…
The dinghy sailor is rescued by Bangor RNLI after getting into difficulty in Ballyholme Bay
#RNLI - Following yesterday’s hoax calls, Bangor RNLI’s lifeboat volunteers rescued a man clinging to a capsized dinghy in Ballyholme Bay this afternoon (Monday 3 April). The casualty, a 26-year old man, had quickly got into difficulty and capsized after…
Donaghadee RNLI's lifeboat Saxon
#Hoax - The UK coastguard has decried an “elaborate hoax” after lifeboats and a coastguard helicopter were launched after several calls from someone claiming to be a kayaker in difficulty off the Co Down coast. As BBC News reports, lifeboats from Bangor and…
Rescue 116 pictured over Wicklow in August 2015
#Rescue116 - No sign of missing Irish Coast Guard crew members Paul Ormsby and Ciarán Smith has been found after search teams succeeded in lifting the wreck of Rescue 116 off the sea bed yesterday (Sunday 2 April), as TheJournal.ie…

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.