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RNLI's bank holiday warning advises: ‘float to live'

August 5th, 2017 12:02 PM

By Southern Star Team

Baltimore inshore Lifeboat.

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Fight your instincts and float to live – that's the message from the RNLI to everyone out and about this Bank Holiday Weekend.

BY EMMA CONNOLLY 

FIGHT your instincts and float to live – that's the message from the RNLI to everyone out and about this Bank Holiday Weekend.

After an exceptionally busy few days for local RNLI crews, they are urging people to take all necessary precautions to ensure their safety this bank holiday weekend. 

Kate Callanan, Baltimore RNLI Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer said: ‘As part of this year's campaign the RNLI is calling on the public to fight their instincts and remember one simple skill – floating – that could save lives from drowning. If you fall unexpectedly into cold water, fight your instincts and float to live.  

‘Once you control your breathing then swim to safety, call for help or continue to float until help arrives.  If you see someone in danger of drowning at the coast, dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard. Look for something that floats or that they can hold on to and throw it out to them.  Don't go in the water yourself.'

She was speaking after Baltimore lifeboat went to the rescue of an upturned vessel off Heir Island on Sunday, July 30th just after 2.30pm.

They  arrived to find a rigged laser sailing boat with no occupants on the shore. 

The lifeboat, with a volunteer crew of three aboard, conducted a search along the shoreline with the  Irish Coast Guard helicopter.  

Reports later came in that while sailing earlier that morning, the boat had got caught up on a static mooring.  Unable to free the vessel, the sailor made their own way ashore, leaving the sailing boat fully rigged and stuck on the mooring.  Some time later the boat came off the mooring by itself and came ashore and whilst lying on its side on the shoreline a member of the public came across it and raised the alarm.

Meanwhile, two days earlier on Friday July 28th they responded to two call outs. The first was a Mayday report of a Drascombe Lugger sailing boat with two people onboard taking on water in Schull Harbour.

Schull Coast Guard's inshore rescue boat was on scene first at 6.17pm and took the vessel under tow and brought it safely back to harbour. Earlier they were called to Cape Clear after the accidental activation of an alarm on a vessel of the island's coast. 

Courtmacsherry RNLI Lifeboat has also been involved in several call outs to boats in distress in recent days with all rescues carried out successfully.

On Tuesday afternoon the crew went to the aid of a 40 foot pleasure fishing boat which sought assistance 15 miles off the Seven Heads, near the Lusitania site, after developing mechanical failure while fishing in the area.

Earlier in the week they rescued four people from a 14 ft pleasure boat off Harbour View in the local bay

They were also called to a 28 ft yacht with three  people on board after it developed mechanical failure in the bay. The yacht was blown on to the nearby sandbank and the lifeboat crew brought them to shore safely. 

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