Three rescued from sinking fishing boat off West Cork, Ireland
The Courtmachsherry RNLI crew were called out after the fishing boat began sinking off the Seven Heads coastline in West Cork, Ireland.
The skipper of the fishing boat issued a Mayday after the 60-foot vessel began sinking 20 miles off the Seven Heads coastline in West Cork.
The crew of Courtmacsherry RNLI were scrambled at 5.46pm on 26 September 2016, arriving at the trawler in just under an hour.
The naval vessel, LE Niamh, which was in the vicinity, and the Irish Coast Guard helicopter from Waterford also responded to the incident.
On arrival, it was found that the fishing vessel was rapidly taking on water.
The RNLI crew transferred its mobile pump to the trawler in order to stem the intake of water in the boat. Pumps from the LE Niamh were also used.
The trawler was then towed by the RNLI lifeboat to Union Hall.
Conditions at sea were very poor, with strong winds force 6-7 and heavy swells in the area.
The visibility was also described as “very poor with low lying fog.”
The Navy vessel LE Niamh stood by during the tow, while the lifeboat crew used its mobile pump to keep the water ingress under control.
The lifeboat eventually arrived at Union Hall at 1am on 27 September.
The RNLI crew then had a two hour journey back to Courtmachsherry.
Commenting on the rescue, Courtmacsherry RNLI Lifeboat operations manager, Brian O’Dwyer, said: “We are all pleased that this evening’s rescue was carried out efficiently under coxswain Sean O’Farrell and his volunteer crew of five including local farmer, Colin Bateman, who manned the mobile pump as he boarded the fishing vessel.”
“This was a fast response from the crew this evening, when every minute gained was precious,” he added.
The crew included coxswain Sean O Farrell, mechanic Pat Lawton, Colin Bateman, Ciaran Hurley, Dara Gannon and Conor Dullea.
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