10 July 2017
By Bryan T. Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
Baltimore RNLI’s volunteer lifeboat crew has responded to three call outs in four days.
The first of the three was a medical evacuation from Cape Clear. A woman from the island was suffering from chest pains and needed to be transferred to the mainland, where she was met by a waiting ambulance at the lifeboat station. The lifeboat was crewed by Kieran Cotter, Sean McCarthy, Cathal Cottrell, Aidan Bushe and Don O’Donovan.
The following night the lifeboat carried out a medivac from Sherkin Island. A man suffered a serious fall from a height and required medical assistance. The lifeboat crew were assisted on the island by a team led by Dr. Jason from West Cork Rapid Response. The casualty was evacuated to the Baltimore where an ambulance was waiting at the lifeboat station to transfer the casualty to hospital in Cork. The crew on the call out were Kieran Cotter, Pat Collins, Jerry Smith, Don O Donovan, Brian McSweeney, Jim Griffiths and Ronnie Carthy.
Yesterday morning (Sunday 9 July) Baltimore RNLI’s inshore lifeboat was launched to go to the assistance of a rigid inflatable boat which had broken down off Cape Clear. Mícheál Cottrell a helm and crewman with Baltimore RNLI was out with his Sea Safari boat on a tour with passengers, when he happened upon the boat with two people onboard which was suffering engine problems.
Mícheál raised the alarm for the two occupants of the boat and Baltimore’s inshore lifeboat was requested to assist. The lifeboat took the boat in tow to Baltimore, where it was berthed safely and the lifeboat returned to station. Crew on the lifeboat were helm Youen Jacob, David Ryan and Ryan O Mahony. Shore crew in assistance were Declan Tiernan, Sean McCarthy, Rianne Smith and Marty O Driscoll.
