Dun Laoghaire RNLI to the rescue

DUN Laoghaire’s lifeboat service has been singled out as one of the most successful stations in the country.

The work of the Southside base was highlighted in figures released by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) following returns of service from all 44 lifeboat stations in Ireland.

Last year, Irish lifeboats launched 939 times and brought 1,041 people to safety.

The figures also show that the majority of callouts were to pleasure craft, which accounted for 482 of the emergencies, while launches to fishing vessels were 115.

Dun Laoghaire RNLI brought the highest number of people to safety with 76 individuals rescued by their volunteer lifeboat crews during 46 callouts.

They were followed by Kilmore Quay RNLI in County Wexford, which brought 71 people to safety on 29 callouts.

The second Dublin all weather lifeboat station, based in Howth, launched 40 times and rescued 48 people.

The charity’s lifeboat crews also had 122 callouts to people classed as

‘ashore’.

This figure incorporates launches to people who are ill or injured on an island, cliff or the shoreline, where access by lifeboat is the fastest or safest way to reach the casualty.

RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager for Dun Laoghaire, Stephen Wynne, said: “The two RNLI lifeboats at Dun Laoghaire recorded a sharp increase in the number of people rescued in 2012, up to 76 for the year which we attribute to the nature of a number of incidents that occurred.

“Like our colleagues around the coast, station volunteers train weekly in preparation for a variety of situations.”

The 2012 period in Dun Laoghaire included several call-outs that saw vessels with more than one or two crew brought to safety.

On two occasions, two boats were involved such as the 13 people rescued on yachts returning from an Irish Sea race in near gale conditions. In another dramatic incident eight people on two power-boats got into difficulties in separate incidents off Bray Head.

The current year has already proved unusually busy with four call-outs and 10 people rescued.

A Trent class (ALB) All-Weather lifeboat ‘RNLB Anna Livia’ and a D-Class (ILB) Inshore lifeboat ‘Realt Na Mara’ are stationed at Dun Laoghaire where the 35 volunteers are involved in lifeboat operations as well as fundraising and running the gift-shop