RNLI eight hours at sea

There was an early morning callout this week for Castletownbere RNLI when they were called to help a fishing vessel in difficulty.

The lifeboat crew was launched at 3.30am on Tuesday to assist a 19 metre fishing vessel which experienced difficulty near the Bull Rock off the Beara peninsula in West Cork.

The alarm was raised when the vessel, with four persons on board, experienced mechanical difficulties eleven miles west of the Bull Rock. Valentia Coastguard Radio requested immediate assistance, who in turn, tasked Castletownbere lifeboat in the early hours of the morning.

The lifeboat was launched within minutes under the command of Coxswain Dean Hegarty and five crew and located the fishing vessel at 5.20am, 28 miles west of Castletownbere Harbour.

Commenting on the callout, Castletownbere RNLI Launching Authority Felix O’Donoghue said: “The crew are to be praised for their quick response and swift launch on Tuesday morning.

“They spent eight and a half hours at sea and thankfully the outcome has been positive.”

The lifeboat took the fishing boat under tow shortly afterwards and brought it to safety within Castletownbere Harbour arriving at 12 midday.