The Lough Derg RNLI rescued two people after they encountered difficulty on a shoal west of Terryglass Harbour.
Rescue crews were alerted to the situation at 5.05pm yesterday when a 16-foot yacht ran aground.
Members of the RNLI, helm Eleanor Hooker and crew, Tom Hayes, Joe O’Donoghue, and Richard Nolan launched the lifeboat, Jean Spier, and located the casualty vessel at approximately 5.25pm, where it was discovered that the two people were safe and unharmed.
A rescue volunteer boarded the yacht and established it was not holed, but had hoisted sails when the outboard engine failed and winds pushed it onto the shoal.
After rescue, RNLI members rotated the bow keel plate and used wind and waves to lift the yacht off the shoal before taking it out onto safe water alongside the Jean Spier and tying it safely at Terryglass Harbour.
Liam Maloney, Deputy Launching Authority at Lough Derg RNLI advises boat users that ‘if you find yourself in difficulty on Lough Derg, dial 999 or 112 and ask for marine rescue’.
