A major search and rescue operation was mounted this afternoon after a young man was reported to be stuck in mud amid rising water in the Shannon Estuary.
The alarm was raised at around 5.20pm when the Irish Coast Guard received a report of a person stuck in mud on the shoreline close to Shannon Airport.
The crew of the Irish Coast Guard helicopter, Rescue 115, was tasked to the incident just two kilometres from their hangar and reached the scene within minutes.
The National Ambulance Service, Clare County Fire and Rescue Service personnel from Shannon station as well as local Gardaà were also mobilised to the scene.
A number of voluntary search and rescue groups including Limerick Marine Search and Rescue, Bunratty Search and Rescue and Shannon Estuary Mud Search and Rescue (SEMSAR) were also tasked but stood down when it was confirmed the man was out of danger.
The helicopter winchman/paramedic was lowered to the ground to check on the man however he had run off wearing nothing only his underpants.
Locals reported seeing a male in his late teens or early 20s running along the river bank with others chasing behind him carrying clothes. It’s believed he had been helped from the mud by passers-by.
It’s understood that a group teenagers and older individuals were ‘bush drinking’ on the river bank at Tradaree Point when the man entered the mud.
After the man left the scene, Gardaà and ambulance paramedics searched the area for a time but it’s understood he wasn’t located.
Meanwhile, a young child was rescued from Lough Derg earlier.
The alarm was raised at around 12.45pm when the Irish Coast Guard received a report of a child in difficulty in the water at Castlelough near Portroe on the Tipperary side of the lake.
The Killaloe unit of the Coast Guard and the Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat were tasked to the incident. Moments after both rescue boats had launched their stations, they were informed that the child had been rescued from the water and was safe and well.