Castletownbere RNLI respond to Mayday to rescue six fishermen from drifting boat
Castletownbere RNLI responded to a Mayday and rescued six fishermen yesterday evening (Wednesday 10 October) after their boat lost power and drifted rapidly towards the shore.
The volunteer crew were requested to launch their all-weather lifeboat at 7.30pm following a Mayday alert to the Irish Coast Guard that a 25m fishing boat with six people onboard had lost power due to a fouled propeller and was drifting at the entrance to the harbour in Castletownbere.
With time of the essence, the lifeboat under Coxswain Dean Hegarty and with four crew members onboard, launched immediately and was on scene within five minutes, at which point the vessel was 20m from the shore. The boat had been blown into a small area by Pipers Rock at the harbour mouth in south westerly 8-9 gale force conditions and amid a 4-5m swell.
The lifeboat crew quickly worked to establish a towline and remove the boat and her crew from immediate danger before bringing them safely back to Castletownbere.
Speaking following the call out, Paul Stevens, Castletownbere RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager said: ‘Time was of the essence this evening and I would like to commend our volunteer crew for the fast response that had them on scene and providing help within 10 minutes of the Mayday. Given the weather conditions and how close the fishing boat was drifting to the shore at this point, the lifeboat’s timely arrival managed to avert a potential tragedy. The fishermen did the right thing in raising the alarm when they did and we would like to wish them well following what must have been a challenging experience.’
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