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THE IRISH COAST Guard has said that the Rescue 116 helicopter was tasked to the rescue of four windsurfers off the coast of Louth.
The men made their way back to shore themselves but not before a rescue call was put out and the RNLI lifeboat at Clogherhead was launched to assist the men.
The incident comes despite warnings from the Irish Coast Guard and numerous other government agencies to avoid coastal areas.
“CG, RNLI and R116 were tasked today to kite surfers in difficulty off Louth. We advise the public to stay away from the coast during #Ophelia,” the Irish Coast Guard said in a tweet at about 11.30 am.
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The rescue was initially thought to involve kite surfers but this was later clarified to be windsurfers.
The call to help the men was made by a member of the public and Rescue 116 later said that assistance was not required despite the helicopter being called to the scene.
“False call with good intent. Four wind surfers located, all safe and well no assistance required,” Rescue 116 said on its Facebook page.
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@Honeybadger197: Ehhhhh they were grand weren’t they ? Returned by themselves, didn’t require rescue. I’ve encountered before sailing in a moderate sea and a member of the public called the RNLI. So we happily sail into port no trouble. Then the RNLI come over and ask us to sign a piece of paper that they ‘rescued us’. When all they did was shadow us around.
@Aodhan Maguire: Yes, because the rescue services can afford to shrug their shoulders and say it’ll be grand. Nevermind the fact people were specifically told to avoid the coast.
@Honeybadger197: surely they could be charged with something like reckless endangerment or similar. They have endangered the service providers and potentially other service users that would be more deserving. They really are morons.
@Aodhan Maguire: Absolutely, correct. There was NO RESCUE. Some member of the public rang the emergency services NOT the surfers.
If they went out today, they were more than likely very experienced and were able for the conditions.
People are so quick to jump to conclusions.
@Bat Daly: people are not jumping to conclusions. They are commenting on what they read. Either way, they went kite surfing when the country shut down because of a massive weather event. It IS reckless and selfish and I don’t really give a rats if they were the best kite surfers in the world.
@Honeybadger197: Whenever you’re out in the water there should be someone who knows what you’re doing and you should have a means to call for help. If you don’t then I’d agree its reckless, foolish and worse puts others in danger.
@bings: We only went out for a day sail. Maybe one mile offshore and a member of the public called and said we were in trouble because too them it looked too rough too be out (maybe a force 6). So they launched an RNLI rib and shadowed us until we returned to port.
@Elma Phudd: Key phrase, “you dont give a rats” ………They are jumping to concluisions. They concluded that they needed to to be rescued when they didnt.
Stick to what you know about. I’ve been windsurfing for over thirty years, was out in storms and me andnone of my friends ever needed to be rescued because we went out in conditions we knew we able for and not to listem to some clown who doesn’t know what he is talking about
@Aodhan Maguire: if there’s a red warning they shouldn’t have gone out on the water. Regardless of their experience. It’s natural that someone on shore would call an emergency if they thought they were in trouble. Every time that helicopter or lifeboat goes out it’s risking crew lives. Your story about sailing is not relevant, unless you would decide to head out sailing when there’s a red warning.
@Andrew: wasting your time with him and bat. They think the rest of us have never even had a bath the way they’re going on without knowing jack about how much experience the rest of us might or might not have. They are also completely missing the point.
@Aodhan Maguire: silly, red warning in place. No one in their right mind should have been thrill seeking at the risk of other people. It turned good for them but obviously cost a fortune. Community service and stint with emergency services should be handed out
@hughsheehy: what actually happened was that a pair of selfish idiots ignored a code red weather warning and repeated warnings to stay out of the water for no good reason! In doing so, they put rescue personnel at risk. As a relative of a missing R116 crew member i find their behaviour absolutely reprehensible and to do it in the home town of Mark Duffy is an added insult! No idea why you would try to defend their stupidity!
@hughsheehy: what happened was thrill seekers knowingly put themselves and more importantly others at risk. If anyone thinks their thought process and actions were sound just on the basis that they were not actually rescued, needs their heads examined too.
@Yvonne Nic Gabhann:
Using your connection to Captain Duffy does not elevate your opinion. T Hey were not in any trouble of any kind and was a member of the public who called the ES.
This member of the public who did not even know the difference between a kitesurfer and a windsurfer decided in their ignorance to call the services.
This was completely unnecessary and the surfers are being lambasted for for no good reason.
If you knew anything about kitesurfing a windsurfing, you would know that competent wind and kitesurfers know their limits and woud only go out in onshore or cross-on conditions where in the event of a mishap, broken mast, ripped sail or other, the surf and prevaining winds would bring them ashore.
But dont let your ignorance stop you from having a little rant
@Bat Daly: @Bat Daly: nice to see your blatant disregard for the lives of rescue personnel..thankfully your “ignorance” is in the very small minority as evidenced by the public outrage..my cousin was an experienced rescue professional with over twenty years experience and training and still lost his life on a routine top cover misson..so take your talk of experience and shove it you ignorant fool!!
@Yvonne Nic Gabhann: Your cousin’s tragic death is tragic, but not relevant.
As for the windsurfers, the Met Eireann warning for the area was from 1pm. They were on the water at 10am. In flat shallow water and moderate onshore breezes, while people walked on the adjacent beach and drove past on the beach road.
@JimmyMc: true it might discourage those in genuine need but when the country is on a red warning like today and people don’t take heed to those warnings then they should be charged ..
@Jimmy Ireland: I stood and watched the whole thing unfold it was no more than 50mtrs from Mark duffys house. Approx 50 members of the emergency services were at the scene. Such a waste of time. I hope these men are ashamed of themselves tonight not alone for the waste of valuable resources but for takin it so close to the duffy families house.
Genuinely, there should be a charge for ‘wasting resources’ during times like this. Unforgivable to risk your own safety like that so someone else inevitability has to risk theirs to rescue you. Annoyed!
I say this with the greatest sensitivity to the fact that no-one was hurt in this incident but that is selfish and irresponsible behaviour on behalf of the kite surfers.
They should be arrested and brought to court for endangering others, given a couple of hundred hours community service and have their names and pictures published in every newspaper and social media site as a lesson to others.
That said, that could encourage others for the notoriety amongst their mates….
Safer for everyone to lock them up and throw away the key……
@Dave Murray: After all the warnings not to do anything stupid these pair of Idiots are putting the rescuers lives at risk what do they have between their ears ?
Ok so they shouldn’t have gone out against advice but I live here and up until 30 mins ago it was sunny and calm except for a blustery breeze on the sea front. Even now 5 hours after the event it’s only just picked up. We would regularly see wind surfers out taking advantage of the high winds in the bay which generally doesn’t go above your waist for quite some distance. The tide is only in for an hour here before it goes out as far as your eye can see. I’m pretty sure these guys had weighed up the dangers and made an informed decision. It was a local that made the call and they did not appear to be in difficulty and had alreadt made thwir way to shore. My husband saw them this more and they appeared to be have a right laugh.
The R116 facebook page just posted saying it was a false alarm call from someone else who had good intentions but that the pair didn’t require assistance at all.
@Ruth Mhic Gearailt: they did not look for help and indeed had made it back to shore by the time the emergency service arrived. However they should not have gone out in the first place against all the national advice. If they had heeded the advice then the well-
intentioned person who phoned the emergency services would not have been in a position to make that call in the first place. Selfish people who disregarded nationwide advice.
@John O’Neill: They didn’t need help. And they were on the water hours before the storm got there. Met Eireann advice was to be indoor from 1pm in North Leinster. The callout was at 10am or so.
Stupid , is to kind a word for those clowns, tasking emergency Personell away , when the world and his mother knew since Friday that conditions were unsafe, thes numpties should be made pay for the cost
Absolute muppets. After all the warnings that were given. Putting rescue staff in danger. Have these clowns no cop on ? They should be made pay a hefty fine. I can never understand people doing stuff like this in the weather conditions we’re having
The highest category weather warning is in force for the whole country and those imbeciles go out kite surfing ? If people like that wish to collect a Darwin Award there’s no need to put others in line for posthumous bravery medals.
@Pat O’Leary: I understand the sentiment, but would you make yourself available to explain to the orphaned kids etc that we abandoned their idiot loved ones out of spite?
They should actually be left out there. They’ll be called legends by the lads and all that sh×te ! Putting people’s lives in danger to rescue them. Idiots
Bunch of a@#holes,by all means risk your own life but to risk the coastguard and rnli crews lives in your pursuit of a thrill at such a dangerous time is both selfish and dumb to say the least.
I stood and watched the whole thing unfold. Not alone in the village where Cpt Mark duffy lived but it was no more that 50mtrs from his front door. With approx 50 members of the emergency services were at the scene it was a serious drain on resources. I sure hope these men are ashamed of themselves tonight not alone for the waste of time but to take it so close to the duffy families front door.
F***ing A**holes. They should be billed is right. They are so selfish they are prepared to put other people’s lives at risk. This should NOT go unpunished.
I am deeply saddened by the many people who have displayed ugly, spiteful and hateful comments about a “non rescue” yesterday before the storm. A group of windsurfers were out simply enjoying strong winds and waves, conditions for windsurfing craft are particularity well-adapted, and which most experienced sailors long for. They did not need rescuing. They could not be “left there” as so many have wished, simply because they just sailed back! The degree of hatred and bile expressed in comments highlight a complete ignorance of the sport, the sea, the wind, and the abilities of those who windsurf. It also displays a side of many people on this island that is truly ugly. A bystander who didn’t even take the trouble to have a good look, went off and needlessly called in a rescue. That was grossly irresponsible, as rescue people should not needlessly be put at risk – especially when they may be needed for ACTUAL, REAL emergencies. It would have been clear if they had looked properly that the guys were having the time of their lives, and didn’t even remotely need rescuing. So what if there were warnings? They are WARNINGS, not commands! The way people are going off with insults and wishing for harm to, or death of the windsurfers – it’s not a pretty picture. Shame on them. I’ll close with what Gerard O’Flynn of the Irish Coastguard stated: “The two earlier incidents were innocent errors really. The bad weather hadn’t hit yet, and they were confident about what they were doing,” O’Flynn said.
Those idiots should be arrested and charged with reckless endangerment of human life and wasting emergency service resources!
Better still, if they’re so smart and capable, let them out there to weather it!!
What absolute reckless and inconsiderate behaviour from these 2 stupid fookers. Whatever about putting their own lives at risk but to potentially endanger the lives of members of the rescue services is another matter all together. I hope they don’t reproduce, couldn’t be doing with the off spring of idiots running around. I hope their pleased with themselves!
@Bat Daly: nice to see your blatant disregard for the lives of rescue personnel..thankfully your “ignorance” is in the very small minority as evidenced by the public outrage..my cousin was an experienced rescue professional with over twenty years experience and training and still lost his life on a routine top cover misson..so take your talk of experience and shove it you ignorant fool!!
Iv’e just read the bulk of the comments on this non-rescue.
To say that I am completely flabbergasted at the complete and utter lack of comprehension of the vast majority of people is an understatement.
I am an Incident Commander for Wilderness Search and Rescue in South Africa, and on occasion we receive calls for assistance which turn out to be non-events. Invariably it is due to a misunderstanding of the situation by the caller. Our reaction: Assess, advise, educate and withdraw. No hard feelings. We always respond on the possibility that there could be a genuine incident.
Kudos to Rescue 116, incident professionally handled.
The lifeboat crew are putting themselves out there in a non judgemental way.They are also putting themselves in danger.They are all volunteers. We dont judge them, do we?
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