Tag Archives: Lough Derg

A RECENT launch by Lough Derg RNLI to investigate a report of a kayaker in difficulty turned out to be a false alarm. Rather than an overturned kayak, a water board being used as a safety buoy by swimmers turned out to be the object of the calls Valentia Coast Guard had requested Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat to launch to investigate a report from a member of the public that a kayaker was in difficulty by Navigation Mark J, at the northern end of Lough Derg.   The lifeboat launched with helm Keith Brennan, crew Owen Cavanagh, Chris Parker and Tom Hayes on board. Winds were south-westerly Force 4 and gusting and visibility was good.  When the lifeboat arrived at Navigation Mark J, north of Gortmore, it began a thorough search of the area. From shore, two swimmers at Gortmore observed the lifeboat and called the RNLI boathouse in Dromineer, suspecting that the water-board which they had been using as a …

TOURISM enterprises around Lough Derg are looking forward to a wave of international business next August thanks to the staging of the Fireball World Championships in the locality, writes Dan Danaher. This will be the first Fireball World Championship since Montreal in 2019 so there is significant interest around the globe, with international teams already booking their accommodation and making travel arrangements. The International Fireball is a high-performance two-person racing dinghy popular in Ireland and around the world. The dinghy class has a small local presence in Dromineer and a larger one in Killaloe SC and in the Dublin Bay waterfront clubs. At the time of writing, teams are expected to flock to the Lough Derg Yacht Club in Dromineer from Australia, Canada, the US, France, Switzerland, Italy, the Czech Republic and South Africa, along with a large contingent from the UK and a rapidly growing local fleet. The organisers have predicted the Fireball event should provide a significant boost …

THE newest fully qualified member Lough Derg RNLI’s lifeboat crew has told how good it feels to be able to help others, as the organisation urges others to volunteer and get involved. Following his final assessment with Helena Duggan, RNLI Assessor/Trainer, earlier this month, Tom Hayes has been passed out as a fully qualified lifeboat crew member with Lough Derg RNLI.   Encouraged by volunteer helm, Dom Sharkey, Tom joined the station first as a Deputy Launching Authority, a responsibility he held for two years.  The role of Deputy Launching Authority is central to operations within all RNLI lifeboat stations, as they make the decision to launch the lifeboat when a request is made by the Coast Guard to do so. Once the decision to launch is made, crew pagers are activated and both lifeboat crew and shore crew immediately travel to the station to attend to the call out.  Watching volunteers train and launch on ‘shouts’, and encouraged by Liam Maloney, …

TEN people were assisted by Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat volunteers over the weekend in two separate incidents where cruise boats were reported to have run aground on the lake. On Sunday Valentia Coast Guard requested Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat to launch to assist seven people on a 45ft cruiser. At 1.35pm the lifeboat Jean Spier launched with helm Owen Cavanagh, crew Steve Smyth, Tom Hayes and Michael O’Sullivan on board. While en route to the stricken vessel, Valentia reported a further three people in need of assistance on a separate 30ft cruiser. At 2.08pm the lifeboat had the initial casualty vessel in sight; aground on a shoal near Navigation Mark G on the Tipperary shore. Marine engineers from the cruise hire company arrived on scene at the same time. The lifeboat remained on standby until the engineers had the cruiser off the shoal and the scene was safe. At 2.30pm the lifeboat departed to assist the three people on the …

TWO people in need of rescue when their fishing boat engine failed on Lough Derg signalled their position to rescuers using torches as night had fallen. At 9.30pm on Thursday evening, August 26, Lough Derg RNLI who were out on exercise were requested by Valencia Coast Guard to assist the occupants of a 12 foot fishing boat just off the Goat Road, on the eastern shore of Lough Derg. The lifeboat with helm Eleanor Hooker, crew Doireann Kennedy, Tom Hayes and Ciara Lynch on board, immediately diverted from their exercise in Dromineer Bay to assist. The RNLI crew plotted a course to the Goat Road and monitored the fast moving vessels operating in the area on radar. Valentia Coast Guard informed the lifeboat that they had requested the casualties to uses lights to signal their location as the lifeboat approached. At 9.49pm as the lifeboat approached the Goat Road, the people on the casualty vessel indicated their position using torches. …

A FAMILY of three were found safe and unharmed after their boat got into difficulty on Scarriff Bay recently. On Monday evening, August 23, Valentia Coast Guard requested Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat to launch to assess a cruiser reported aground by a concerned member of the public. The cruiser 36 foot motor cruiser was said to be in Scarriff Bay, north of the entrance to the Scarriff River. At 6.51pm the lifeboat Jean Spier launched with helm crew Owen Cavanagh, crew Eleanor Hooker, Joe O’Donoghue and Doireann Kennedy on board. When the lifeboat arrived at the scene the cruiser was aground on a rocky shore, north of the entrance to the Scarriff River. The lifeboat stood off to inspect the aspect of the cruiser, which appeared to be pivoting on the edge of the shoal. The lifeboat made a cautious approach to the casualty vessel and found there was a family of three on board, all safe and unharmed and …

A NUMBER of White-Tailed Eagle chicks have been released into the wild at Lough Derg, boosting the ongoing project to reintroduce the species in South East Clare and a number of other Munster locations. A total of 21 chicks were released at four locations by staff of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) who had been keeping the chicks at purpose-built enclosures at the Shannon Estuary, Waterford and Killarney National Park. The clutches had arrived from Norway five weeks ago in the hope of further bolstering Ireland’s existing White-Tailed Eagle population, and the reintroduction programme, which began in 2007. The re-establishment of breeding White-tailed Eagles at sites like Lough Derg and Killarney National Park has proven hugely popular with local residents, while the potential for economic benefits from sensitive, sustainable ecotourism was experienced in Mountshannon, when the first breeding pair nested within sight of the village in 2012, attracting thousands of visitors. Once a conspicuous part of Ireland’s landscape, …

New state-of-the-art clubhouse on Lough Derg shores will allow Killaloe Sailing Club to develop to its true potential KILLALOE Sailing Club is on the crest of a wave following the start of construction work on its new state-of-the-art €700,000 club house facility on the shores of Lough Derg. It is expected the new club house will be fully constructed by the end of the year. Phase one consists of the car and sailing dinghy park. The second phase involves the construction of the new modern building, which will provide proper on-shore facilities for club members. Jim Ryan, long standing member and driving force behind the club development, highlighted that the new facilities will greatly enhance the club’s offering to its current members, and will also provide a wonderful amenity for the populations of the wider Clare, Tipperary and Limerick area. “Until now, the club has been somewhat limited in developing its true potential due to the very poor on-shore facilities …