RNLI, partners respond to fishing boat fire off West Cork, Ireland

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and other local agencies have successfully rescued the four crewmembers of a fishing vessel that had caught fire while off the coast of West Cork, Ireland, on Friday, May 14.

The Courtmacsherry RNLI station deployed an all-weather lifeboat with a crew of six after receiving a mayday call from the distressed fishermen at around 01:45 local time.

Within minutes of the mayday alert being issued, the crew of four on the fishing vessel had to take to their liferaft as the fire had engulfed their boat.

Just after 02:20, the offshore supply vessel (OSV) Pathfinder operating at the Kinsale Gas Field located the bright orange liferaft, after it deployed its own fast rescue boat to the scene. It immediately took all four crew from the liferaft on board safely.

The RNLI said that, although the survivors were noticeably in shock, no one was injured.

All four fishermen were later transferred to Courtmacsherry lifeboat after it arrived at the scene.

Meanwhile, another OSV operating at the Kinsale Gas field used its pumps to get the fire under control while the RNLI lifeboat brought the four fishermen back to safe terrain in Courtmacsherry, arriving there shortly after 05:00.

The Irish Naval Service patrol vessel LÉ George Bernard Shaw later arrived at the area to assist in monitoring the fire-damaged fishing boat, which later sank.

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