Tag Archives: Killaloe Coast Guard Unit

SEEING the relief in people’s faces after being rescued from stranded vessels has been very rewarding, according to a local Killaloe Coast Guard volunteer. Audrey Kenny and her husband Jason were recently honoured for their more than 20 years’ combined service as volunteers by the Irish Coast Guard. She told The Champion that people really appreciate being rescued when vessels run aground or cut out the lake. Coastal Unit Sector Manager, Damien Kelleher presented ten-year service medals to Jason and Audrey Kenny at Pier Head, Killaloe recently. Audrey is the longest serving female member of the unit, who has completed all the necessary training qualifications. The second female member is Lucy Whenday, who joined the unit a few years ago. Since Audrey joined ten years ago, she recalled three or four women had joined and subsequently left the unit. Most of the group who joined with them more than 10 years ago have left for different reasons. In May 2012, …

Jet ski operators, who drive at excessive speed on Lough Derg, are putting the lives of swimmers at risk, Killaloe Coast Guard has warned. Killaloe Coast Guard was tasked to assist local gardai deal with jet skis being operated at dangerous speeds near Killaloe Bridge on Monday and Tuesday. A number of vessels were requested to return to the relevant slipways and the owners were spoken to by Gardai. A Coast Guard spokesman told The Clare Champion that some jet ski operators were driving at speed of up to 60 kilometres an hour near Killaloe Bridge in a speed limit area of about five kilometres. He said some jet skis were doing “doughnuts”, which is akin to doing a handbrake turn on the water, which in turn creates a backwash that causes issues for boats being knocked against jetties, and for swimmers. During periods of hot weather, he said large numbers of young teenagers are congregating and swimmers dive off …

Members of Killaloe Coast Guard Unit responded to two call outs on Saturday night – one to a man who suffered a suspected heart attack and the second to a cruiser which ran aground on Lough Derg. The man was airlifted to hospital after he suffered cardiac arrest on board a boat at Banagher. The Killaloe unit was alerted and responded as did the Shannon based search and rescue helicopter, Rescue 115. Ambulance paramedics and gardaí also went to the scene where the boat had moored at Banagher. The man was removed by the helicopter crew and flown to Galway University Hospital. While returning to their base at Killaloe, the unit was directed to a second emergency call. A 40-foot cruise boat with five people on board had run aground south of the Silly Island on Lough Derg. Conditions were bad with darkness setting in. Shore teams were also sent to the area by road and a stricken cruiser was …