The RNLI came to the rescue of a boat stranded on the rocks at the north end of Lough Derg and fetched one crew member who swam to shore.
After the rescue of the crew and passengers of the 36ft cruiser on Thursday, the lifeboat crew gave them all a lift back to Portumna.
The lifeboat was called out at approximately 1pm on Thursday by the Coast Guard to assist two people on a 36ft vessel reported aground inside Navigation Mark H at Gortmore Point.
At 1:15pm the lifeboat located the casualty vessel inside Navigation Mark H and 25ft from shore. The lifeboat stood off to observe the casualty vessel, which appeared to be raised out of the water and pivoting on a central point.
With a volunteer taking soundings at the bow and using on-board electronic charts, the lifeboat navigated a safe passage to the vessel.
At 1:23pm the lifeboat was alongside the starboard stern side of the casualty vessel. RNLI volunteers noted hazards in the water close by.
An RNLI volunteer boarded the casualty vessel and established that there were three people on board, safe and unharmed and all wearing their lifejackets.
When they asked if there were any more people on board, they were told that a fourth member of the crew had swam to shore.
The skipper of the stranded cruiser had deployed the anchor in an attempt to prevent it from drifting further towards the shore.
They informed the lifeboat that they had damaged their propellers and suffered engine failure after hitting rocks.
An RNLI volunteer checked under the floorboards and reported back to the lifeboat that there was no ingress of water or visible damage to the hull,
As the stricken boat was high out of the water and looked to be pivoting on the rock it was stuck on, the RNLI crew decided to take everyone off the cruiser and onto the lifeboat.
Before that, they made sure the stranded boat was secure, with all of the windows closed and the gas supply switched off for safety’s sake.
The lifeboat informed Valentia Coast Guard of this decision and the plan to moor up at the nearby Gortmore Harbour, so that two RNLI volunteers could walk back to locate the person who had swam to shore.
Accompanied by one of the casualties, 2 volunteers set out on foot from Gortmore Harbour to search for the fourth casualty.
A member of the public who had offered to drive down the road to assist in the search located the man who swam to shore, and drove him back to rejoin the others.
With the four casualties reunited, the lifeboat took them to Portumna, where their car was located.
The lifeboat departed the scene at 2:39pm and was back at the station at 3:03pm. The lifeboat was washed down and refuelled at 3:13pm
