COAST GUARD ROUNDUP

The Irish Coast Guard continued to provide a vital service in 2019. The Irish Coast SAVING LIVES AT SEA

The Irish Coast Guard had another busy year in 2019, with the three Rescue Coordination Centres at Malin Head, Valentia Island and Dublin handling 2,487 incidents.

The number of incidents is similar to those of the past two years, with 2,647 in 2018 and 2,503 in 2017.

AT SEA The RNLI were requested to launch by the Coast Guard on more than 815 occasions in order to rescue people at sea, with Coast Guard units overall responding to 1,075 call outs throughout the year.

BY AIR The Coast Guard helicopter services provided under contract by CHCI and operating a fl eet of Sikorsky S92 helicopters out of bases in Dublin, Shannon, Waterford and Sligo, saw more than 770 missions in 2019. These included inland searches for missing persona in support of An Garda Síochána and Mountain Rescue Teams.

Apart from maritime search and rescue services, the Coast Guard also provides support services to the offshore islands, and in 2019 there were 123 emergency missions undertaken by the nationwide network of more than 940 volunteers from these islands to the mainland. Coast Guard helicopters also provided Helicopter Emergency Medical Services to the NAS, including inter-hospital transfers.

PLANS The publication of a new National Search and Rescue (SAR) Plan, overseen by an independent committee, and a National Oil Spill Contingency Plan, were two highlights for the service in 2019. The SAR plan replaces the preexisting framework and affords equal recognition to the three components of Search and Rescue: Maritime, land and aviation, with an added emphasis on oversight arrangements.

FOCUS In 2020, the Coast Guard says it will continue to focus on the importance of Prevention as a core safety theme, and will

continue to work with colleagues in Water Safety Ireland, the RNLI, Bord Iascaigh Mhara and the Irish Sailing Association in promoting water safety and identifying key risk areas. The service also plans to re-launch its Safety on the Water website this year.

This focus supports earlier campaigns aimed at educating the public, such as the Raise the Alarm and Stay Afl oat campaigns that are central to preventing drownings at sea or in inland waterways. The message of Stay Afl oat Stay in Touch continues to highlight the importance of never engaging in any boating activity without wearing a fullyserviced life jacket or personal fl otation device, coupled with a capacity to raise the alarm via a VHF radio, personal locator beacon (PLB), an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB), or mobile phone (although the Coast Guard cautions that mobile phones should not be relied upon as the only means of emergency communication at sea, due to unreliable coverage and susceptibility to failure when wet). The Coast Guard also continues to remind people that these actions should always be supported by informing

shore-based colleagues of intended activity and anticipated return time.

Particular attention is attached to Lives Saved, with the Coast Guard estimating that 378 individuals were categorised as such in 2019.

BEACONS MRCC Dublin, which processes alerts from all emergency beacons registered in Ireland, as well as any beacon alerts from foreign vessels or aircraft operating within the Irish Search and Rescue Region, handled 195 satellite beacon alerts in 2019. Although the majority proved to be false alerts due to accidental activation or expired equipment, this still represented a signifi cant workload.

THANKS Coast Guard Director, Eugene Clonan, said of 2019: “The publication of the National SAR and Oil Spill Contingency plans were two signifi cant achievements in the past year, and I want to acknowledge the very constructive engagement that we had with a multiplicity of stakeholders.”

He added: “I want to also acknowledge the commitment and professionalism of our Volunteer members. In addition to the three core services that they provide, they are an integral part of community resilience and continually act as the eyes and ears of our RCCs in responding to any coastal emergency.”