The Shannon-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter responded to a suspected ship in distress off the southwest coast of Ireland earlier today.
The Coast Guard here had been alerted to an activation of a distress beacon carried by vessels at sea. The signal was received from an Emergency Position Indicator Radio Beacon (EPIRB) at a location around 150 kilometres off the Kerry coast.
Automatic EPIRB’s activate when they are released from their mounting bracket under pressure from water when a vessel sinks. When activated, an EPIRB transmits a coded message on a specific radio frequency which is monitored by the COSPAS-SARSAT system, an international satellite-aided search and rescue (SAR) initiative. The relevant SAR agency for that area is then notified.
Watch officers at the Irish Coast Guard’s marine rescue coordination centre on Valentia Island in Kerry mounted a search and rescue operation at around 9.30am today after they were alerted to the activation.
The crew of Rescue 115, based at Shannon Airport, was scrambled soon afterwards. Meanwhile, Rescue 117 out of Waterford Airport was dispatched to Kerry Airport where it remained ready to respond in the event additional assistance was required.
A UK Coast Guard Beech 200 Super King Air fixed wing aircraft was sent from Humberside Airport in North Lincolnshire in England to provide Top Cover support for the emergency operation. Top Cover usually involves another aerial asset providing communications and other SAR (search and rescue) support to a helicopter on medium to long range missions.
It’s understood that at the time, the Irish Air Corps was not in a position to dispatch an aircraft to undertake the Top Cover support at the time.
After a comprehensive search was carried out it was established that the EPIRB activation was what the Irish Coast Guard has since described as an “anomaly.” As there was no vessel in distress or persons in danger the search operation was stood down.
The UK Coast Guard aircraft turned around north of Liverpool and returned to Humberside Airport while both Rescue 115 and Rescue 117 returned to their respective bases in Shannon and Waterford.
The Irish Coast Guard has added: “This was a multinational response that involved the UK and Danish Coast Guards working closely with the Irish Coast Guard.”
