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Police in Northern Ireland are investigating whether a body washed up on a Co Down beach is that of a kayaker who went missing on Carlingford Lough more than two weeks ago.
As previously reportd on Afloat.ie, area man Mark McGowan, 37, was last seen kayaking in the lough at 7.30pm on Monday 10 October.
His blue kayak was spotted by the Irish Coast Guard on 11 October at Killowen Point, on the north side of the lough.
A cross-border search and rescue operation was immediately launched but progress was hampered due to bad weather.
The Belfast Telegraph reports that a body was discovered on Cranfield Beach near Newry by a member of the public yesterday morning. Formal identification of the body has not yet taken place.
At the time of his disappearance, McGowan was described as 5'7" tall, medium build, with a clean shaven, tanned complexion and short bleached blonde hair. He was last seen wearing a red jacket, blue jeans and white trainers.
Police in Northern Ireland are investigating whether a body washed up on a Co Down beach is that of a kayaker who went missing on Carlingford Lough more than two weeks ago.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, area man Mark McGowan, 37, was last seen kayaking in the lough at 7.30pm on Monday 10 October.

His blue kayak was spotted by the Irish Coast Guard on 11 October at Killowen Point, on the north side of the lough.

A cross-border search and rescue operation was immediately launched but progress was hampered due to bad weather.

The Belfast Telegraph reports that a body was discovered on Cranfield Beach near Newry by a member of the public yesterday morning. Formal identification of the body has not yet taken place.

At the time of his disappearance, McGowan was described as 5'7" tall, medium build, with a clean shaven, tanned complexion and short bleached blonde hair. He was last seen wearing a red jacket, blue jeans and white trainers.
Published in News Update
Police in Northern Ireland have launched an investigation after a six-year-old boy was critically injured when he was struck by a speedboat near Carlingford Lough in Co Down. Stuart Wilson was on a wake-board being towed by another boat when the accident happened at Cranfield Bay near Kilkeel on Monday.

It is understood another speedboat  hit the youngster, leaving him with serious head injuries.

In a statement released on behalf of the Wilson family, Reverend David Somerville said:

"The family of Stuart Wilson, aged six years old, say that he remains critically ill. They would like to thank people for their support and prayers but appeal for privacy at this difficult time. They ask everyone to continue to pray for Stuart."

Stuart was given first aid on Cranfield Beach by a doctor and an off-duty nurse before being rushed to Daisy Hill hospital in Newry by ambulance. 

Published in News Update

The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 boats built.

The class is active in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and parts of north-eastern USA, and the GP14 can be used for both racing and cruising. 

Designed by Jack Holt in 1949, with the assistance of the Dovey Yacht Club in Aberdyfi. The idea behind the design was to build a General Purpose (GP) 14-foot dinghy which could be sailed or rowed, capable of also being powered effectively by a small outboard motor, able to be towed behind a small family car and able to be launched and recovered reasonably easily, and stable enough to be able to lie to moorings or anchor when required. Racing soon followed, initially with some degree of opposition from Yachting World, who had commissioned the design, and the boat soon turned out to be an outstanding racing design also.

The boat was initially designed with a main and small jib as a comfortable family dinghy. In a design philosophy that is both practical and highly redolent of social attitudes of the day the intention was that she should accommodate a family comprising parents plus two children, and specifically that the jib should be modest enough for "Mum" or older children to handle, while she should perform well enough to give "Dad" some excitement when not taking the family out. While this rig is still available, and can be useful when using the boat to teach sailing, or for family sailing, and has some popularity for cruising, the boat is more commonly seen with the full modern rig of a mainsail, genoa and spinnaker. Australian boats also routinely use trapezes.

GP14 Ireland Event Dates 2023

  • O'Tiarnaigh (Apr 22-23) Blessington Sailing Club
  • Ulsters (May 20-21) East Antrim Boat Club
  • Munsters (Jun 17-18) Tralee Bay Sailing Club
  • Leinsters (Jul 7-9) Dun Laoghaire Regatta
  • SOYC (Aug 19-20) Rush Sailing Club
  • Nationals (Sep 1-3) Sutton Dinghy Club
  • Hot Toddy (Sep 30-Oct 1) Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club

 

At A Glance – GP14 Dinghy Specifications

Crew 2
Draft 1,200 mm (47 in)
Hull weight 132.9 kg
LOA 4.27 m (14 ft)
Beam 1.54 m
Spinnaker area 8.4 m2
Upwind sail area 12.85 m2

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