#NewHarbour - The newly constructed Killybegs Small Craft Harbour which Afloat reported on during the summer was officially opened last week. 

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed TD launched the official opening for the new marine project. ABCO Marine IRL had recently completed Phase 3 of the project, the works consisted of the provision and installation of steel tubular piles and floating breakwater pontoons.

Minister Creed said at the launch that, "The new harbour, fully funded by the state, is a first class facility capable of accommodating 63 boats ranging up to 15metres in length with one berth capable of accommodating larger vessels in excess of 20 metres long. This is a great development for Killybegs Harbour and will complement the existing world class facilities in place for our large fishing vessels".

#BanríonUladh - A Northern Irish minister has sailed into stormy waters after rechristening a fisheries protection vessel from its Irish name to its English translation, as the Belfast Telegraph reports.

Banrion Uladh — which patrols the Irish Sea between Lough Foyle and Anglesey in North Wales — is now Queen of Ulster after the change by Agriculture Minister Michelle McIlveen, whose DUP expressed upset over the original naming of the vessel by then minister Michelle Gildernew of Sinn Féin in 2010.

The renaming, which was carried out during scheduled repairs, is cited as part of a move by Minister McIlveen’s department to a single-language policy in the new Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

The Belfast Telegraph has more on the story HERE.

#Fishing - The Marine Institute’s annual Irish Groundfish Survey (IGFS2016) began off the North West Coast on Sunday 25 September, continuing till Thursday 6 October, in fulfilment of Ireland’s Common Fisheries Policy obligations.

IGFS2016 is a demersal trawl survey consisting of a minimum of 45 fishing hauls each of 30 minutes’ duration. Fishing in 2016 is taking place within a two-nautical-mile radius of positions indicated in Marine Notice No 41 of 2016, available to read or download HERE.

The survey is being conducted by the RV Celtic Explorer (Callsign EIGB), which will display all appropriate lights and signals throughout and is also listening on VHF Channel 16.

The Celtic Explorer will be towing a high headline GOV 36/47 demersal trawl during fishing operations. The Marine Institute requests that commercial fishing and other marine operators keep a two-nautical-mile area around the tow points clear of any gear or apparatus during the survey period outlined above.

While there is no statutory provision for the loss of gear at sea, the Marine Institute will make every effort to avoid gear adequately marked according to legislation that may be encountered in the notified areas.

In the event that an operator has static gear or other obstructions within 2nmi of the haul points, it is the responsibility of the owner to notify the survey managers or vessel directly.

This should be communicated by identifying specifically which ‘Prime Station’ is of concern using the appendix and contact details provided.

It is not required to provide positional details of commercial operations beyond 3-4nmi of the survey points provided. Specifics of any fishing gear or other obstructions that are known and cannot be kept clear of these survey haul locations can be notified using the contact details provided in the Marine Notice.

#RNLI - Two British naval war ships, three helicopters and a fishing vessel joined Peel RNLI in the dramatic rescue of a trawler between Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man in the early hours of Wednesday morning (21 September).

The 20m converted fishing vessel from Kilkeel in Co Down was on passage in the Irish Sea from Glasgow to Conwy in Wales when it started taking water through the stern tube and was in danger of sinking some 11 miles west of the Isle of Man.

Peel's all-weather lifeboat Ruby Clery, under the command of coxswain Paul Cain, launched shortly after the volunteer crew were alerted at 1.30am.

Northern Irish fishing vessel Stephanie M gave shelter to the casualty until the lifeboat crew were able to put a pump on board to evacuate the water.

The vessel, with three adults and one child on board, was soon stabilised and helicopters and other vessels stood down. The trawler was then taken in tow by the lifeboat bound for Peel.

During this time, a young woman and the child were taken ill, so the tow was dropped about 15 minutes from Peel and the two taken to a waiting ambulance where they were treated and then removed to Nobles Hospital.

Meanwhile, the lifeboat returned to the stricken vessel, which was now under its own power, and escorted it into Peel Harbour at about 5am.

"We advise people to always check their equipment before leaving port," said Cain after the callout.

#GalwayBay - A fisherman who was recovered from Galway Bay after a major search and rescue effort yesterday afternoon later died in hospital, as The Irish Times reports.

The alarm was raised after the man's 6m potting boat was found empty, with its engine still running, at Tawin Island off Oranmore around 3.30pm yesterday (Wednesday 7 September).

RNLI lifeboats from the Aran Islands and Galway Bay launched in tandem with the Irish Coast Guard's Shannon-based SAR helicopter and Casla Bay rescue boat for the three-hour operation that concluded when the missing man, who was wearing a lifejacket and showing signs of life, was recovered near the Blackrock buoy off Salthill.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

#MarineNotice - Site investigation works are being carried out at Dingle/An Daingean Fishery Harbour Centre in Co Kerry, according to the latest Marine Notice from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport.

The works involve the drilling of multiple boreholes at locations, subject to minor variations, as indicated by the co-ordinates and map included in Marine Notice No 37 of 2016, a PDF of which is available to read or download HERE.

Drilling was expected to begin yesterday (Monday 5 September) and will finish on or around Friday 28 October, weather permitting.

A jack-up barge will be moved to the various borehole locations by the tug Samson (Callsign ZQVL6) and will remain on site overnight during the operations.

All appropriate lights will be displayed by the barge at night. Radio navigation warnings will be transmitted on VHF Channel 16 throughout the works.

#RNLI - Lough Derg RNLI was requested to launch by Valentia Coast Guard yesterday evening (Sunday 4 September) to assist a fisherman whose boat was wedged inside a rocky shoal.

At 5.50pm, the inshore lifeboat launched with helm Eleanor Hooker, Liam Knight and Keith Brennan on board. Winds were east-southeasterly Force 2 and visibility was good.

The lifeboat located the vessel in Youghal Bay, and the fisherman on board was found safe and wearing his lifejacket.

He was taken onto the lifeboat and an RNLI volunteer transferred across to the lakeboat before it was taken off the shoal and towed to safe harbour in Youghal Bay.

Peter Kennedy, deputy launching authority at Lough Derg RNLI, advises boat users "to bring charts with you and know the areas close to shore marked as unnavigable."

#RNLI - Wicklow's all-weather lifeboat Annie Blaker launched at 7.30am yesterday morning (Saturday 3 September) to assist a fishing vessel four miles offshore.

The RNLI lifeboat, under the command of coxswain Nick Keogh, was alongside the stricken vessel 18 minutes after launching.

After a quick assessment, the 12m whelk trawler with three crew was found to have gearbox failure and unable to motor back to port.

Weather conditions in the area at the time saw a sea state slight with rain and fair visibility.

Once a towline was established, the trawler was taken back to Wicklow Harbour, where the volunteer crew secured the fishing vessel safely alongside the south quay by 8.40am.

#MCIB - Two fishing crew died after exposure to toxic gases that were not detected within their trawler's refrigeration system, according to the official findings on the incident in Killybegs a year ago.

The new report from the Maritime Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) also recommends the issue of a Marine Notice warning fishing crews of the hazards of toxic gases within closed spaces on board their vessels.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the tragedy occurred when the two men were cleaning refrigeration tanks on the fishing vessel Oileán an Óir in Killybegs Harbour on Monday 24 August 2015.

When one man was overcome by fumes upon entering the port-side tank, his colleague was similarly overcome when going to his aid. Both were rescued from the tank and removed to hospital for treatment, but later died as a result of the inhalation of lethal levels of hydrogen sulphide gas.

The MCIB report determined that the gas, a common byproduct from the breakdown of organic matter such as fish, was held in solution within water that had not been fully flushed out of the trawler's refrigeration system after the end of the pelagic fishing season five months prior.

When the two crew members ran harbour water through the system to flush out the tanks, the gases released remained in the confined spaces.

The report highlights that while the trawler's refrigeration system lacked gauges or sensors to detect toxic fumes, it was also standard practice for the crew to enter the tanks for various purposes, such that the first crew member "would not have perceived the danger that this action posed to him or the repercussions to the safety" of his crewmate.

"Fatalities due to enclosed space entry is an issue of considerable concern" within the merchant shipping sector, the report adds, despite the hazards of toxic gases in such spaces being "well known in the broader marine industry".

The full MCIB report on the Oileán an Óir incident is available to download below.

#Fishing - The latest Marine Notice from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport reminds fishing vessel operators to monitor their bilge spaces prior, during and after voyages.

It is also essential that bilge alarms are tested regularly, to determine that both the audible and visible alarms are working.

In addition, it is good practice to regularly inspect bilge suction strainers to ensure they are clean and ready for use.

The notice is prompted by the recommendation made in last year's report by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board into the sinking of the FV Napier off the Saltee Islands on 30 January 2014.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the Kilmore Quay lifeboat launched to the rescue of two fishermen on board the small lobster boat as it sank off the Co Wexford islands.

The official MCIB report into the incident was unable to determine the exact cause of water flooding the boat's bilge and engine area as it was not recovered from the sea bed, though it is presumed to be a serious failure of the seawater cooling system.

The full report is available to read or download HERE.