A rescue operation was mounted this afternoon after a boat with three fishermen on board got into difficulty off Co Clare.
The men had been fishing off Kilkee, close to George’s Head, when their 23ft boat suffered engine failure around 5.30pm.
They managed to raise the alarm by calling the Irish Coast Guard on their VHF radio.
The Kilkee unit of the Coast Guard was alerted and quickly launched their boat.
Staff at the Coast Guard marine rescue sub centre on Valentia Island in Kerry issued a radio message requesting any vessels in the area to offer assistance.
On arrival at the scene Coast Guard volunteers found that the crew had managed to restart the vessel’s engine. The fishing boat was escorted back to the pier in Kilkee.
Conditions at the time had begun to deteriorate while Met Éireann had issued a small craft weather warning for the area.