Two fishermen are being praised for their prompt and decisive actions after they rescued a woman from the River Shannon in Killaloe, Co Clare on Saturday morning.
A multi-agency search and rescue operation was mounted shortly after 10am when emergency services received a report of a woman in the water in the vicinity of the bridge that links Clare and Tipperary at Killaloe/Ballina.
The Irish Coast Guard, National Ambulance Service, Clare County Fire and Rescue Service and Gardaà were alerted and responded to the incident.
The Shannon-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter, Rescue 115, was also tasked to the incident and reached the scene in a matter of minutes. The helicopter had just arrived back at Shannon after completing a mission from the Aran Islands to University Hospital Galway when they were rerouted to Killaloe.
Units of the fire brigade from Scariff were mobilised to the scene as local crews from Killaloe were dealing with another incident.
As Coast Guard volunteers were just about to launch their rescue boat and as Rescue 115 arrived at the scene, it was confirmed that the woman had been taken on board a boat by two fishermen.
Coast Guard teams travelled to the scene by road and were on hand to assist the woman ashore. She was handed into the care of ambulance paramedics before being transported to University Hospital Limerick for treatment.
The fishermen who pulled the woman from the are being praised for their prompt actions. They are not believed to be from the area but understood to have been visiting Killaloe for a days fishing.
Killaloe Coast Guard has thanked the fishermen for their quick response.
It was the second time in a week at that person was rescued from the River Shannon in the vicinity of Killaloe bridge.
On Tuesday, a woman who fell into the river at the same location was rescued by a passing jet-skier.
Emergency services were alerted to the incident at around 9.15am on Tuesday and arrived at the scene to find that the woman had been rescued and brought shore.
Several attempts to reach the woman with a life-buoy failed however a jet-skier, who was in the area at the time, saw the incident unfold and jumped into action.
Both operations were coordinated by watch officers at the Irish Coast Guard’s marine rescue sub centre on Valentia Island in Kerry.