Shortly after 12.30 today the RNLI was requested to launch by Valentia Coast Guard following a report that a horse was seen in the Nenagh River, which is in flood, and was being swept downstream into Lough Derg.
After using the lifeboat to encourage the horse to swim towards shore, crewmen Ger Egan and Keith Brennan waded in and holding a tow line between them to discourage the horse from swimming back out into the lake and herded him into the shallows.
On shore a person coaxed the horse from the water with a bucket of oats. The animal had wounds to its chest and knee and Valentia CoastGuard arranged for a vet to go to the location.
With some difficulty, the young horse was enclosed in a field. The lifeboat returned to Station and was ready for service again at 2.15pm
Deputy Launching Authority, Pat Lynch advises ‘caution close to river banks, particularly while in flood with the increased danger of soft verges’.
