Clifden Life Boat

2009

Sunday 15th November

5 red flares in quick succession were seen by a member of the public, apparently from the west of Omey Island. Possibly a fire-work. None the less, both boats were launched (the D-Class from Aughrus Pier) to search around the island. The Atlantic searched west of the island towards Cruagh Island, while the D-Class searched closer in to Omey and also checked with a person living on the island. No trace of a casualty was found and both boats returned to base.

Saturday 17th October

A father and two children were stranded on High Island after their dingy broke its mooring and drifted out to see. The father acted quickly to alert the emergency services who tasked the Clifden Lifeboat to go to their assistance. Due to the promptness of the father's action, the Lifeboat was able not only to pick up the three people from the island and but also to recover the dingy which had drifted north. All were taken to Streamstown Bay and safely deposited back on the mainland.

Monday 14th September

A red flare was reported from what appeared to be south of Slyne Head. The Atlantic 75 was launched from Clifden Bay to search the area from the north running south and the D-Class was launched from Bunowen to search the area from the south running north. Nothing was located and the search was eventually called off.

Monday 7th September

A member of the public noticed the yacht to be in trouble north of Inishturbot island and notified a member of the Lifeboat personnel who in turn liaised with a DLA and Malin Head Coast Guard to launch the Atlantic 75. Although blowing a force 7 (gusting 8), the Atlantic was launched as the wind was south easterly and the route to the casualty and the casualty itself were in the lee of the mainland and, although the swell was significant, it was deemed safe to proceed. The casualty had a single person on board, had suffered a broken fore-stay and was having difficulty securing an anchor position (the engine seemed to be not powerful enough to cope with the conditions). The Atlantic took the yacht in tow and brought it to a visitor mooring off Clifden Boat Club. To help with the mooring itself, as the swell was quite significant even off the Boat Club, the D-Class was launched to help feed a mooring rope through the eye of the mooring buoy. The Atlantic stood off to ensure the D-Class safely recovered before it was recovered. The casualty was left on board the yacht.

Thursday 13th August

Malin Head Coast Guard, and others, picked up a DSC alert from the Clifden Bay area. Both the Atlantic 75 and the D-Class were launched. The Atlantic tracked south towards Roundstone while the D-Class went north towards Renvyle Point. Nothing was found and the Coast Guard stood both boats down as dark descended. The situation was put down to a false alarm.

Thursday 30th July

A canoeist was thought to be in trouble off the White Lady in Clifden Bay and the D-Class was tasked to give assistance if required. The Canoeist turned up elsewhere safe and sound and the D-Class therefore returned to base.

Monday 20th July

A Pan-Pan was received at 19.50 concerning a small yacht missing between Cleggan and Inishbofin. Both the Atlantic 75 and the D-Class were tasked to go to its assistance. The yacht was located without difficulty and was escorted to Cleggan by the Atlantic 75 while the D-Class was stood down on arrival (by road) in Cleggan.

Saturday 18th July

Both the Atlantic 75 and the D-Class were tasked by the Coast Guard to go to the assistance of a person seen to be in the water off Inishnee. The individual concerned made his way safely to shore while the D-Class towed the Currach back to Roundstone. The Atlantic 75 was stood down off Murvey Rock and returned immediately to base.

Friday 17th July

A number of Galway Hookers were reported to be dragging their anchors off Roundstone. The Atlantic 75 and the D-Class were both tasked by the Coast Guard to go and give assistance. On checking all the boats at anchor off Roundstone, both boats returned to base.

Monday 29th June

A small power boat with two people on board had landed on High Island on Sunday afternoon with the two people staying over night. The following morning they had been unable to start their engine as it had been damaged and they telephoned the Coast Guard for assistance. The Atlantic 75 was launched and proceeded to the scene where, after four attempts due to a heavy local swell, they managed to take the two people off the island and take their boat in tow. All were returned safely to Clifden.

Tuesday 26th May

A sailing yacht en route from Westport to the Volvo Race in Galway had over-nighted on a mooring off Clifden Yacht Club. The crew over-nighted in Clifden. In the morning it was observed by a member of the public to have broken its mooring. He notified a member of the Lifeboat crew who in turn notified the Lifeboat Operations Manager. Both the Atlantic 75 and the D-Class were launched to go to its assistance. The yacht had drifted ashore and was holed above the water line, but with no significant ingres of water. The yacht was successfully towed back to a mooring off the Yacht Club and successfully secured. The Lifeboat crew stayed on board a little while to ensure there was indeed no water ingres, the crew of the yacht were themselves notified, then both Lifeboats returned to Station for recovery.

Tuesday 21st April

Tuesday the 21st of April our pagers were activated by the Coast Guard requesting a launch at 11:04. I (John Brittain) was in the station at the time and called the Coast Guard who told me they had received a 999 call informing them that there was an up-turned curragh between Aughris Pier and the point of Omey Island, and they asked if we could investigate it. I requested both boats to launch. The Atlantic 75 was launched at 11:10 and at the same time the IB1 proceeded to Aughrus Pier by road where I spent the duration of the search. Weather was good with a light SW breeze and good visibility but there was a moderate swell.#

The IB1 was crewed by Joseph Acton (Helm) Andrew Bell & Roger Snow, driver: Conor McEvaddy

As the Atlantic 75 passed the south side of Omey they noticed 3 oars floating in the water and further to the west they spotted the capsized curragh just off a rock. The curragh appeared to be fast on the rock which was awash with breaking seas. After appraising the situation the crew decided to try and free the upturned boat from the rock in case there was anyone underneath it. James Mullen, helm, positioned the lifeboat with the currach on the lifeboat’s forward port side, (just feet from the breaking seas) and the two crew Sinead O’Sullivan and Daniel Whelan secured a line to it but they were unsuccessful in moving it as the curragh was still attached to fishing gear which was fast on the rock. The Lifeboat decided they would await the arrival of the IB1 for more help. A short while later the IB1 arrived on scene and after a short discussion the two helms decided that the IB1 would wait off with two crew on board, and the remaining four crew men would go back into the breaker and attempt to right the curragh. This time they managed to right the curragh avoiding the breaking seas and ropes but there were no casualties on board. The Curragh was handed over to a local fishing boat and requested he tow it to Aughris pier.

At this point it had been established on shore that two fishermen had gone lobster fishing in the curragh and were now missing and that we were searching for two men.

Clifden Coast Guard requested Clifden Lifeboat (Atlantic 75) assume the role of on scene commander. The Atlantic 75 decided to organise a creeping line search from the breaker in a southerly direction as the tide had been setting in that direction for some hours. One local fishing boat agreed to help and it, the IB1 and the Atlantic started a search which after a short while yielded a fish box, some timber and then the fuel tank from the curragh.

After completing the first leg of the search The Atlantic 75 asked other vessels on the scene to assist with a co-ordinated search. There were 7 local curraghs, 5 fishing boats, 4 ribs, Celtic Queen and The Inishbofin ferry on scene at this time. The Celtic Queen (sea angling vessel) was requested to do a search from High Island to Croagh Island moving easterly on each leg. A number of ribs and the Inshboffin ferry undertook a parallel creeping-line search. Meanwhile a fixed-wing Coast Guard aircraft arrived on scene and was requested to do an expanding box search. A short while later a Coast Guard IMES helicopter arrived on scene as well. The Atlantic 75 requested the helicopter do a static hover over the incident point with that at its west side as it was too dangerous for boats to search in that locale, after which he was requested to search the surrounding islands.

In the meantime The Atlantic 75 had organised the creeping line search with the Inishboffin Ferry at the centre due to his height, the IB1 at the southerly end and the 75 on the northerly end with the ribs and fishing boats in between.

About twenty minutes into the sweep, one of the ribs found the first of the casualties who was taken aboard the Atlantic 75 which then returned to station at Clifden leaving the IB1 as on scene commander.

Earlier The Atlantic 75 had requested that Achill’s ALB should be tasked to the scene to assume the role of On-scene commander and the ALB arrived on scene at 15.35.

The Atlantic 75 was refuelled and re-launched with a crew change at 15:24hrs and returned back to the scene by which stage Achill’s ALB had assumed the role of on scene commander from the IB1. Once back on scene the Atlantic and the IB1 retrieved as much of the casualties fishing gear as they could in case the second person had got tangled in it.

The IB1 had a crew change and was re-launched at 15.50 and at 17:09hrs the second casualty was located by divers. He was transferred to the Atlantic 75 which then returned to Clifden.

At 17:12 hrs all vessels and aircraft were stood down and by 18:35 hrs both boats were scrubbed down and ready for service again.