Three fishermen, who had been missing at sea and were the subjects of a major search and rescue operation off the west coast of Ireland, have been found alive, safe and well.
Their boat - the 14 m long timber-hulled Bainrion na dTonn - was spotted about 50 miles west of Slyne Head in Co. Galway at around lunchtime today and has meanwhile returned to Rossaveal Harbour.
It has emerged that the fishing vessel got into difficulty when it developed a problem with its fuel system. The engine stopped and subsequently the boat drifted out into the Atlantic without power for more than 24 hours.
The crew eventually succeeded in repairing the technical fault and had restarted the engine shortly before they were located by a Coast Guard helicopter and a fixed-wing reconnaissance aircraft of the Irish Aer Corps.
The alarm was raised and search operations were launched after the trawler and its three crewmen failed to arrive - as it had been expected - in the small port of Rossaveal (photo) in Co. Galway a number of days ago.
Nothing had been heard from the vessel and her crew since they left the port of Killybegs in Co. Donegal on Wednesday, and no contact could be established with them from shore.
Two Coast Guard helicopters, based in Sligo and Shannon, an Aer Corps CASA aircraft from Baldonnel, the Clifden lifeboat, six Coast Guard units and a number of trawlers took part in the search.
The skipper and owner of the boat is an experienced fisherman who comes originally from Co. Kildare, but has lived and worked in both Donegal and Rossaveal for several years. He has purchased the Bainrion na dTonn only recently.
I am glad to share this rare bit of good news with you tonight. For many years we have lost Irish fishing vessels and their crews, and most of these tragedies happen during the winter months, when the weather around here is rough and tough, and nowhere more than at sea.
My special thanks go our Coast Guard for their tireless search operation, and to the Aer Corps for their professional support. As much as I have been critical a few days ago, as much I do acknowledge that they are both doing a great job in coastal and inshore waters. This case is a typical example for a well organised and executed search, which was successful and ended happily with no-one being lost or hurt.
I also like to point out the courage, stamina, skills and endurance of the crew of the Bainrion na dTonn. The three men had a tough time out there, and a very difficult task to perform. They succeeded, and are to be congratulated.
But anyone who has ever experienced a vessel in distress with engine trouble, a ship or boat that is unable to manoeuvre and left to the natural drift of the ocean, will share my special feelings of empathy with the three fishermen.
May they be save in future as they are tonight, and may their further sailings be happy, successful and without troubles.
The Emerald Islander
Their boat - the 14 m long timber-hulled Bainrion na dTonn - was spotted about 50 miles west of Slyne Head in Co. Galway at around lunchtime today and has meanwhile returned to Rossaveal Harbour.
It has emerged that the fishing vessel got into difficulty when it developed a problem with its fuel system. The engine stopped and subsequently the boat drifted out into the Atlantic without power for more than 24 hours.
The crew eventually succeeded in repairing the technical fault and had restarted the engine shortly before they were located by a Coast Guard helicopter and a fixed-wing reconnaissance aircraft of the Irish Aer Corps.
The alarm was raised and search operations were launched after the trawler and its three crewmen failed to arrive - as it had been expected - in the small port of Rossaveal (photo) in Co. Galway a number of days ago.Nothing had been heard from the vessel and her crew since they left the port of Killybegs in Co. Donegal on Wednesday, and no contact could be established with them from shore.
Two Coast Guard helicopters, based in Sligo and Shannon, an Aer Corps CASA aircraft from Baldonnel, the Clifden lifeboat, six Coast Guard units and a number of trawlers took part in the search.
The skipper and owner of the boat is an experienced fisherman who comes originally from Co. Kildare, but has lived and worked in both Donegal and Rossaveal for several years. He has purchased the Bainrion na dTonn only recently.
I am glad to share this rare bit of good news with you tonight. For many years we have lost Irish fishing vessels and their crews, and most of these tragedies happen during the winter months, when the weather around here is rough and tough, and nowhere more than at sea.
My special thanks go our Coast Guard for their tireless search operation, and to the Aer Corps for their professional support. As much as I have been critical a few days ago, as much I do acknowledge that they are both doing a great job in coastal and inshore waters. This case is a typical example for a well organised and executed search, which was successful and ended happily with no-one being lost or hurt.
I also like to point out the courage, stamina, skills and endurance of the crew of the Bainrion na dTonn. The three men had a tough time out there, and a very difficult task to perform. They succeeded, and are to be congratulated.
But anyone who has ever experienced a vessel in distress with engine trouble, a ship or boat that is unable to manoeuvre and left to the natural drift of the ocean, will share my special feelings of empathy with the three fishermen.
May they be save in future as they are tonight, and may their further sailings be happy, successful and without troubles.
The Emerald Islander
3 comments:
I too feel very relieved. I was born in Killybegs and any bad or seemingly bad news puts me in a funk. Very glad to hear the good news. I was at the Killybegs docks last March and there were a lot of fishing boats docked because they were on an EEU quota system. Has that been changed at all?
I too feel very relieved. I was born in Killybegs and any bad or seemingly bad news puts me in a funk. Very glad to hear the good news. I was at the Killybegs docks last March and there were a lot of fishing boats docked because they were on an EEU quota system. Has that been changed at all?
Thank you for your comment. I am not an expert on the EU fishing policy, but as far as I am aware, quotas still exist and their observance is enforced rather strictly (by the Irish Naval Service, for example).
Last time I visited Killybegs I was there to see the 'Solitaire', after she abandoned work at the Corrib gas field off Co. Mayo.
There were some fishing vessels in port then, but not too many.
The personal memories I have with regards to Killybegs go back a lot longer. It was on a boat from Killybegs - out in Donegal Bay - that I caught my very first mackerels.
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