Surfers drift seven miles out to sea

March 1990

TWO windsurfers who get into difficulty off the coast of Blackrock are lifted to safety by an Air Corps helicopter.

The men are part of a group of enthusiasts who travel to the village for a day’s windsurfing.

They are not long out when the wind and tide turns, and they begin to drift.

On a high tide, estimated by an eye witness at 16 feet, one of the men is unable to get his sail up and his companion goes to his aid.

However, they are unable to get back to shore against the wind.

As soon as their colleagues on the beach realise the situation, they contact Marine Rescue at Shannon.

An Air Corps Alouette is sent from Baldonnel aerodrome in Co. Dublin.

The windsurfers are winched to safety seven miles out to sea.

One man is detained overnight for observation in Louth county hospital before being released the next day.

The incident again illustrates the peril posed to windsurfers at the popular seaside village.

One expert says that many people don’t realise the dangers associated with the area.

‘If you start to drift at Blackrock there is nowhere else to go but out to sea. That in itself is very serious. Spotting people from the air in such a wide area is also difficult.

‘In places like Carlingford, not only are there rescue services and the British army gunboat which are always picking up windsurfers, the area is enclosed and even if you keep drifting you will only end up in Warrenpoint or Rostrevor.’

Two weeks earlier, a visitor to Blackrock from Kingscourt in Co. Cavan was also winched to safety, suffering from exposure, after he had spent more than two hours drifting off the coast.