Castletownbere lifeboat was called into action on Saturday as two kayakers got into difficulty in waters off the Beara Peninsula.
The RNLI lifeboat was launched following reports that two kayakers in difficulty, with one in the water off Cods Head. The kayakers had raised the alarm themselves as they had a VHF radio and a Person Locator Beacon.
Valentia Coastguard Maritime Coordination Rescue Centre requested assistance of Castletownbere Lifeboat, Castletownbere Coast Guard unit, the National Ambulance Service and the Shannon-based AW 189 Coast Guard Helicopter Rescue 115.
The Castletownbere RNLI lifeboat ‘Annette Hutton’ was launched at 12.03pm, and a short time later, the two kayakers managed to scramble ashore with one of the kayaks being damaged. The two kayakers were attended to by the Castletownbere Coast Guard unit and both were safe and well.
The weather was calm but visibility was poor at only 100 metres. The lifeboat and helicopter were both stood down at 12.27pm and the lifeboat returned at 12.55pm.
‘This call-out demonstrated the importance of having the correct safety equipment when going to sea – these two kayakers had both a VHF and PLB and were able to raise the alarm with no difficulty and therefore, the emergency services were able to respond immediately,' said Lifeboat Launching Authority, Brendan O’Driscoll.
He also praised lifeboat crew for their very quick response. The crew were under the command of Coxswain Dean Hegarty with mechanic David O’Donovan and crew Joe Cronin, John William O’Donoghue, Donagh Murphy and Dion Kelly.
