Hero’s return for LE Eithne

THE crew of LE Eithne returned to Cork yesterday to a hero’s welcome.

The ship and its 72-strong crew pulled 1,187 people from the Mediterranean as part of Ireland’s response to the migrant crisis.

Commander Brian Fitzgerald said: “Our first rescue involved 705 migrants and transporting them to a port of safety.

“That was a record for the Irish Navy and it was an incredible thing.”