A lone sailor was rescued on Lough Derg this afternoon after his vessel suffered engine failure and drifted onto rocks.
The man was on board a 19ft sailing boat and was rounding Urra Point on his way to Domineer on the Tipperary side of the lake when he got into difficulty.
The alarm was raised at around 11.50am when the sailor contacted the Irish Coast Guard marine rescue sub centre at Valentia in Kerry.
It’s understood that the boat began drifting towards rocks near Urra Point but the wind wasn’t strong enough to take his sail and steer him clear.
The man attempted to start his outboard engine but was unable to and boat ran aground.
The Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat launched and its volunteer crew made their way to the scene which was only a short distance from their base.
The crew located the boat and an RNLI member was transferred to the casualty vessel. The volunteer remained with the sailor while the lifeboat towed the boat off the rocks to deeper water.
After checking to ensure the sailing boat had not been holed or otherwise damaged, the boat was towed into Domineer Harbour and safely tied up. The sailor was unharmed.