Castletownbere RNLI was called out at 2am this morning to assist a yacht that was dragging its anchor in Dunmanus Bay.
The 32ft yacht, with five people on board, had anchored near Dooneen point on the northern shore of Dunmanus Bay the previous evening, but, as night progressed and the weather grew worse, the yacht started to drag its anchor.
The skipper became concerned and raised the alarm with Valentia Coastguard Radio, and it tasked the Beara volunteer crew under the command of coxswain Dave Fenton.
Within minutes, the Castletownbere lifeboat, the Annette Hutton had launched with crew members Marney O’Donoghue, Sean ‘Bawn’ O’Sullivan, Joe Cronin, Seamus Harrington, Aaron O’Boyle and Donagh Murphy on board.
The yacht was located shortly before 3am and it was escorted to a safer mooring at Lawrence Cove Marina in Bere Island at about 6am this morning.
‘The yacht made the right call in seeking help and moving to a safer mooring because there was a small craft warning in operation and the weather was deteriorating,’ Dave Fenton told The Southern Star. ‘It's always better to err on the side of caution.’
