By Sarah Curran
PORTAFERRY RNLI assisted in the rescue of two people from a fishing vessel which ran aground off Ardglass at the weekend.
Portaferry RNLI launched their inshore lifeboat, Blue Peter V, after receiving a distress call from Belfast Coastguard last Saturday at 12.10am, asking them to assist two people on board a 46 foot fishing vessel which had run aground close to the entrance of Ardglass harbour.
Facing a strong force six, 24 knot wind and rough sea, the crew observed the vessel to be high aground and listing and made the decision to bring the two crew members to safety.
However, taking into consideration the fishing vessel’s position, as well as the weather and sea state at the time, a decision was made to request the assistance of a Coastguard helicopter.
A short time later both crew members were winched on board the Coastguard helicopter from Wales and transferred to a nearby landing site where they were met by members of Newcastle Coastguard team.
Speaking after the call out, Portaferry RNLI helm, Paul Mageean said: “The vessel’s crew did the right thing in calling for help.
“The poor weather conditions and the darkness of the night made for a challenging situation but we train for scenarios like this which always help us to assess and decide upon the best option to bring those on board to safety.”
