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Displaying items by tag: RNLI lifeboat

#NEWS UPDATE - A fisherman whose body was found in a Scottish harbour on St Stephen's Day has been identified as that of a 34-year-old Donegal man, the Belfast Telegraph reports.

Philip Anthony Toland, from Glengad in Inishowen, Co Donegal, was last seen on Christmas Day near the pier at Ullapool harbour in the Scottish Highlands.

As BBC News reports, concerns were raised later that evening and a search was launched involving police, coastguard and RNLI lifeboat teams.

The body was located by a police dive team in the sea near the pier when the search resumed on Monday morning.

It is being speculated that Toland - who has an eight-year-old son - may have slipped and fallen into the water while returning to his boat.

Published in News Update
The 30-strong crew of Llandudno RNLI are celebrating the 150th anniversary of their branch's founding.
"We are very proud to have reached this milestone," spokesman Alan Sharp told the Daily Post.
Since 1861 the Llandudno lifeboat has saved 550 lives from the Irish Sea off the coast of north Wales - many of them close to the town's renowned promenade.
The Daily Post has more on this story HERE.

The 30-strong crew of Llandudno RNLI are celebrating the 150th anniversary of their branch's founding.

"We are very proud to have reached this milestone," spokesman Alan Sharp told the Daily Post.

Since 1861 the Llandudno lifeboat has saved 550 lives from the Irish Sea off the coast of north Wales - many of them close to the town's renowned promenade.

The Daily Post has more on this story HERE.

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Water Safety News from Ireland

Marine Casualty Investigation Board News

Marine Warnings

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
The Portaferry RNLI lifeboat was involved in the rescue of four men from a fishing boat that ran aground off the coast last Monday evening, the Belfast Telegraph reports.
The lifeboat aling with the Portaferry and Newcastle Coastguard and and Irish Coast Guard helicopter from Dublin responded to a distress call from a 60ft trawler that ran into difficulties close to Ardglass harbour.
All four men on board were rescued and treated by paramedics on scene, and the vessel was later refloated.

The Portaferry RNLI lifeboat was involved in the rescue of four men from a fishing boat that ran aground off the coast last Monday evening, the Belfast Telegraph reports.

The lifeboat along with the Portaferry and Newcastle Coastguard and and Irish Coast Guard helicopter from Dublin responded to a distress call from a 60ft trawler that ran into difficulties close to Ardglass harbour.

All four men on board were rescued and treated by paramedics on scene, and the vessel was later refloated.

Related Safety posts

RNLI Lifeboats in Ireland


Safety News


Rescue News from RNLI Lifeboats in Ireland


Coast Guard News from Ireland


Water Safety News from Ireland

Marine Casualty Investigation Board News

Marine Warnings

Published in RNLI Lifeboats

Ballycotton RNLI lifeboat launched this afternoon to a 40–foot pleasure craft which has a foulded propeller, a mile east of Ballycotton lighthouse in East Cork. They are on scene at present (15:14) and are attempting to free the propellor. Update to follow.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
Ballycotton lifeboat station received a request for assistance to a 31 ft. yacht with a fouled propeller 4 miles east of Ballycotton. The yacht, with two persons aboard, had left Crosshaven earlier when a rope wrapped around its propeller south of Knockadoon, East Cork.  On arrival at the casualty a lifeboat crewmember was placed on board and attempts were made to free the rope. With the successful completion of this exercise the yacht continued it journey and Ballycotton RNLI lifeboat returned to station.
Published in RNLI Lifeboats

 

An Garda Siochana received a call from a concerned woman who had observed a yacht struggling with its sail. She was unsure but was afraid that they may be having difficulties and in need of assistance. The Gardai contacted Ballycotton RNLI lifeboat station and 23:30 the Ballycotton lifeboat launched to investigate the report.  After a short search they returned to harbour having satisfied themselves that all was in order.

A few hours later, at 04:10, they launched again. This time it was to a 44 ft fishing vessel with propeller problems 37 miles south east of Ballycotton.  They are due to be with the casualty at 06:00 when a tow will be commenced. Conditions at sea are fresh and it will take approximately 6 hours to tow the vessel to harbour.

More to follow in due course.

 

 

Published in RNLI Lifeboats

Courtown volunteer RNLI lifeboat crew and their supporters gathered today (Saturday 24 April 2010) to officially name their new IB1 lifeboat Cairde an Chuain. The name means Friends of the Harbour and was chosen in memory of Courtown lifeboat crew who have passed away.

 
The lifeboat and was made possible through a community appeal, which raised over €48,000 for the provision of the lifeboat and crew training.   Members of Seafield Golf and Country Club selected the RNLI Courtown appeal as their chosen charity for a year and raised thousands of euro towards the cost of the new lifeboat. 

 
Chairman of the RNLI Irish Council and Trustee for the charity, John Coyle underlined the importance of the lifeboat to Courtown, “ Every year sees an influx of visitors to this place, many of whom are drawn to the beautiful beaches and the great hospitality of the locals. We are fortunate to have a dedicated team of lifeboat volunteers on hand day or night to help those who find themselves in difficulty at sea.  I wish Courtown lifeboat crew many successful launches and safe returns.”

 
Sam Kennedy, Courtown RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager added, "We are extremely grateful to everyone who gave so generously to our appeal.  This improved D class lifeboat will allow our volunteer crews to respond more quickly in emergencies and may well make the difference between life and death for someone in trouble on the water.”

 
Representatives from six families of crewmembers who have passed away officially named the lifeboat. Eileen O’Byrne, Eileen Redmond, James Sinnott, Linda Hurney, Mona Sheehan and John Redmond helped pour champagne over the bow of the lifeboat before it was launched into the sea and cheered on by the crowd. 

 
Cairde an Chuain D711 has replaced D548 Star of the Sea.  The previous lifeboat came into service in 1999 and was retired in August 2009.  The new lifeboat is five metres in length and can take three crew onboard.  It has a range of three hours at maximum speed of 25 knots. 

 

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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A man has been rescued from the River Tweed after falling from a ladder whilst boarding his angling boat. Lynda Bell, watch officer at Humber Coastguard says:


 We received a 999 call at 11.40 this morning reporting that the man had fallen in the water and asking for assistance. The caller had heard the man shouting for help and we could still hear him shouting for help in the background as the 999 call was made.


 “We requested the Berwick RNLI inshore lifeboat to launch and it was soon on scene picking the man up from the water.


"The 69 year old, who is from the Berwick area, was wearing a lifejacket so this meant that we were able to recover him from the water very quickly.  He also did exactly the right thing by shouting for help as soon as he entered the water. After a quick check over by ambulance paramedics he was allowed home.


“This incident shows just how crucial a lifejacket can be.  It can mean the difference between a swift and simple rescue or a protracted search with a possible fatal outcome.  Please remember to wear your lifejacket.  It’s useless unless worn.”

Published in Rescue

Courtown RNLI will hold an official naming and dedication ceremony for its new D-Class Lifeboat on Saturday 24 April 2010. The ceremony will take place at 2pm on the north pier in Courtown Harbour where the lifeboat will be officially named Cairde an Chuain (Harbour Friends).


The Courtown volunteer lifeboat crew and committee are issuing an invitation for everyone to join them for the ceremony. The new D-Class Lifeboat will have the number D711 and will be named Cairde an Chuain as a dedication to those volunteers of Courtown RNLI who have passed away.


Cairde an Chuain has replaced D548 Star of the Sea that came into service in 1999 and retired from service in August 2009. The funding for the new lifeboat was raised locally through various fundraisers and voluntary donations. The new inshore lifeboat costs €32,000 and is a significant investment in life saving. 


Courtown Lifeboat Operations Manager Sam Kennedy said, “ Everyone with Courtown RNLI is looking forward to this important event.  We hope that all our friends and supporters can join us on the day. A lifeboat naming ceremony is always a meaningful and memorable community event in the history of a lifeboat station.  I know this new lifeboat will go on many successful callouts for years to come.”

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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A 45ft wooden charter schooner went aground late yesterday afternoon in Roaring Water Bay, West Cork reports Sheela Broderick of Baltimore Lifeboat There were 3 men, 3 women and a young girl of preschool age on board at the time. The tide was falling so assistance was immediately required.

At 17:44, the Baltimore inshore lifeboat Bessie, was tasked to go to the assistance of the stricken vessel. Bessie is a twin-outboard Rigid Inflatable Boat that is capable of a top speed of 32 knots.

When the lifeboat arrived on scene, Helm,Micheal Cottrell, assessed the situation. The yacht was stuck fast on a rock on the North East corner of the East Skeam Island. A tow was passed to the schooner. Initially the inshore lifeboat attempted to pull the yacht off the rocks directly from behind, but the she did not budge. The vessel was listing 10 degrees on the rock, so it was decided to try a tow applied at right angles and this strategy proved successful in shifting the yacht from its perch.

The crew of the lifeboat then took 2 women and the little girl aboard as the journey time back to the yacht moorings at Sherkin Island was considerable. The lifeboat took the women and the little girl to Sherkin Island. The yacht was able to make her own way back to Sherkin with the rest of the passengers.

Lifeboat Crew: Helm - Micheal Cottrell, Ronan Callanan and Paul O’Driscoll.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
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Irish Olympic Sailing Team

Ireland has a proud representation in sailing at the Olympics dating back to 1948. Today there is a modern governing structure surrounding the selection of sailors the Olympic Regatta

Irish Olympic Sailing FAQs

Ireland’s representation in sailing at the Olympics dates back to 1948, when a team consisting of Jimmy Mooney (Firefly), Alf Delany and Hugh Allen (Swallow) competed in that year’s Summer Games in London (sailing off Torquay). Except for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Ireland has sent at least one sailor to every Summer Games since then.

  • 1948 – London (Torquay) — Firefly: Jimmy Mooney; Swallow: Alf Delany, Hugh Allen
  • 1952 – Helsinki — Finn: Alf Delany * 1956 – Melbourne — Finn: J Somers Payne
  • 1960 – Rome — Flying Dutchman: Johnny Hooper, Peter Gray; Dragon: Jimmy Mooney, David Ryder, Robin Benson; Finn: J Somers Payne
  • 1964 – Tokyo — Dragon: Eddie Kelliher, Harry Maguire, Rob Dalton; Finn: Johnny Hooper 
  • 1972 – Munich (Kiel) — Tempest: David Wilkins, Sean Whitaker; Dragon: Robin Hennessy, Harry Byrne, Owen Delany; Finn: Kevin McLaverty; Flying Dutchman: Harold Cudmore, Richard O’Shea
  • 1976 – Montreal (Kingston) — 470: Robert Dix, Peter Dix; Flying Dutchman: Barry O’Neill, Jamie Wilkinson; Tempest: David Wilkins, Derek Jago
  • 1980 – Moscow (Tallinn) — Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson (Silver medalists) * 1984 – Los Angeles — Finn: Bill O’Hara
  • 1988 – Seoul (Pusan) — Finn: Bill O’Hara; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; 470 (Women): Cathy MacAleavy, Aisling Byrne
  • 1992 – Barcelona — Europe: Denise Lyttle; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; Star: Mark Mansfield, Tom McWilliam
  • 1996 – Atlanta (Savannah) — Laser: Mark Lyttle; Europe: Aisling Bowman (Byrne); Finn: John Driscoll; Star: Mark Mansfield, David Burrows; 470 (Women): Denise Lyttle, Louise Cole; Soling: Marshall King, Dan O’Grady, Garrett Connolly
  • 2000 – Sydney — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, David O'Brien
  • 2004 – Athens — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, Killian Collins; 49er: Tom Fitzpatrick, Fraser Brown; 470: Gerald Owens, Ross Killian; Laser: Rory Fitzpatrick
  • 2008 – Beijing (Qingdao) — Star: Peter O’Leary, Stephen Milne; Finn: Tim Goodbody; Laser Radial: Ciara Peelo; 470: Gerald Owens, Phil Lawton
  • 2012 – London (Weymouth) — Star: Peter O’Leary, David Burrows; 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; Laser Radial: Annalise Murphy; Laser: James Espey; 470: Gerald Owens, Scott Flanigan
  • 2016 – Rio — Laser Radial (Women): Annalise Murphy (Silver medalist); 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; 49erFX: Andrea Brewster, Saskia Tidey; Laser: Finn Lynch; Paralympic Sonar: John Twomey, Ian Costello & Austin O’Carroll

Ireland has won two Olympics medals in sailing events, both silver: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson in the Flying Dutchman at Moscow 1980, and Annalise Murphy in the Laser Radial at Rio 2016.

The current team, as of December 2020, consists of Laser sailors Finn Lynch, Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon, 49er pairs Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle, and Sean Waddilove and Robert Dickson, as well as Laser Radial sailors Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins.

Irish Sailing is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland.

Irish Sailing’s Performance division is responsible for selecting and nurturing Olympic contenders as part of its Performance Pathway.

The Performance Pathway is Irish Sailing’s Olympic talent pipeline. The Performance Pathway counts over 70 sailors from 11 years up in its programme.The Performance Pathway is made up of Junior, Youth, Academy, Development and Olympic squads. It provides young, talented and ambitious Irish sailors with opportunities to move up through the ranks from an early age. With up to 100 young athletes training with the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway, every aspect of their performance is planned and closely monitored while strong relationships are simultaneously built with the sailors and their families

Rory Fitzpatrick is the head coach of Irish Sailing Performance. He is a graduate of University College Dublin and was an Athens 2004 Olympian in the Laser class.

The Performance Director of Irish Sailing is James O’Callaghan. Since 2006 James has been responsible for the development and delivery of athlete-focused, coach-led, performance-measured programmes across the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway. A Business & Economics graduate of Trinity College Dublin, he is a Level 3 Qualified Coach and Level 2 Coach Tutor. He has coached at five Olympic Games and numerous European and World Championship events across multiple Olympic classes. He is also a member of the Irish Sailing Foundation board.

Annalise Murphy is by far and away the biggest Irish sailing star. Her fourth in London 2012 when she came so agonisingly close to a bronze medal followed by her superb silver medal performance four years later at Rio won the hearts of Ireland. Murphy is aiming to go one better in Tokyo 2021. 

Under head coach Rory Fitzpatrick, the coaching staff consists of Laser Radial Academy coach Sean Evans, Olympic Laser coach Vasilij Zbogar and 49er team coach Matt McGovern.

The Irish Government provides funding to Irish Sailing. These funds are exclusively for the benefit of the Performance Pathway. However, this falls short of the amount required to fund the Performance Pathway in order to allow Ireland compete at the highest level. As a result the Performance Pathway programme currently receives around €850,000 per annum from Sport Ireland and €150,000 from sponsorship. A further €2 million per annum is needed to have a major impact at the highest level. The Irish Sailing Foundation was established to bridge the financial gap through securing philanthropic donations, corporate giving and sponsorship.

The vision of the Irish Sailing Foundation is to generate the required financial resources for Ireland to scale-up and execute its world-class sailing programme. Irish Sailing works tirelessly to promote sailing in Ireland and abroad and has been successful in securing funding of 1 million euro from Sport Ireland. However, to compete on a par with other nations, a further €2 million is required annually to realise the ambitions of our talented sailors. For this reason, the Irish Sailing Foundation was formed to seek philanthropic donations. Led by a Board of Directors and Head of Development Kathryn Grace, the foundation lads a campaign to bridge the financial gap to provide the Performance Pathway with the funds necessary to increase coaching hours, upgrade equipment and provide world class sport science support to a greater number of high-potential Irish sailors.

The Senior and Academy teams of the Performance Pathway are supported with the provision of a coach, vehicle, coach boat and boats. Even with this level of subsidy there is still a large financial burden on individual families due to travel costs, entry fees and accommodation. There are often compromises made on the amount of days a coach can be hired for and on many occasions it is necessary to opt out of major competitions outside Europe due to cost. Money raised by the Irish Sailing Foundation will go towards increased quality coaching time, world-class equipment, and subsiding entry fees and travel-related costs. It also goes towards broadening the base of talented sailors that can consider campaigning by removing financial hurdles, and the Performance HQ in Dublin to increase efficiency and reduce logistical issues.

The ethos of the Performance Pathway is progression. At each stage international performance benchmarks are utilised to ensure the sailors are meeting expectations set. The size of a sailor will generally dictate which boat they sail. The classes selected on the pathway have been identified as the best feeder classes for progression. Currently the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway consists of the following groups: * Pathway (U15) Optimist and Topper * Youth Academy (U19) Laser 4.7, Laser Radial and 420 * Development Academy (U23) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX * Team IRL (direct-funded athletes) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX

The Irish Sailing performance director produces a detailed annual budget for the programme which is presented to Sport Ireland, Irish Sailing and the Foundation for detailed discussion and analysis of the programme, where each item of expenditure is reviewed and approved. Each year, the performance director drafts a Performance Plan and Budget designed to meet the objectives of Irish Performance Sailing based on an annual review of the Pathway Programmes from Junior to Olympic level. The plan is then presented to the Olympic Steering Group (OSG) where it is independently assessed and the budget is agreed. The OSG closely monitors the delivery of the plan ensuring it meets the agreed strategy, is within budget and in line with operational plans. The performance director communicates on an ongoing basis with the OSG throughout the year, reporting formally on a quarterly basis.

Due to the specialised nature of Performance Sport, Irish Sailing established an expert sub-committee which is referred to as the Olympic Steering Group (OSG). The OSG is chaired by Patrick Coveney and its objective is centred around winning Olympic medals so it oversees the delivery of the Irish Sailing’s Performance plan.

At Junior level (U15) sailors learn not only to be a sailor but also an athlete. They develop the discipline required to keep a training log while undertaking fitness programmes, attending coaching sessions and travelling to competitions. During the winter Regional Squads take place and then in spring the National Squads are selected for Summer Competitions. As sailors move into Youth level (U19) there is an exhaustive selection matrix used when considering a sailor for entry into the Performance Academy. Completion of club training programmes, attendance at the performance seminars, physical suitability and also progress at Junior and Youth competitions are assessed and reviewed. Once invited in to the Performance Academy, sailors are given a six-month trial before a final decision is made on their selection. Sailors in the Academy are very closely monitored and engage in a very well planned out sailing, training and competition programme. There are also defined international benchmarks which these sailors are required to meet by a certain age. Biannual reviews are conducted transparently with the sailors so they know exactly where they are performing well and they are made aware of where they may need to improve before the next review.

©Afloat 2020