February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
The Irish summer weather has also sparked news in various parts of the country.
Two men died on Thursday of last week when winds were suspected of blowing their plane off course as it prepared to land on a flight from the Aran Islands to Inverin, in Connemara, County Galway.
Nine people were on the flight which left Dublin’s Weston Airport on Thursday morning with two aboard before landing at Inverin to pick up the rest of the party for a flight to Inis Me_in.
The plane hit scrub and gorse close to the runway on its return to Connemara, destroying a large section and the front of the aircraft. The group of local businessmen were understood to be considering buying a plane similar to the Cessna Grand Caravan they were traveling in for the ill-fated flight.
Loughrea accountant Paul McNamee (57) and the experienced pilot Matt Masterson (59) from Terenure in Dublin both died while three were seriously injured. An investigation is underway.
At around the same time on the east coast, a major emergency rescue operation was launched after over 100 teenagers were tossed into the sea from their boats in a junior yacht race off D_n Laoghaire on Dublin’s southside.
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board is to launch an inquiry as to why the junior regatta, organized by the Royal St. George Yacht Club, went ahead despite a force-eight gale warning issued by the Irish Meteorological Office on the morning on of the race. A warning of wind speeds of between 35 and 40 knots is considered dangerous for small craft.
Although participants had full safety equipment and the regatta had many accompanying boats, a full city emergency plan swung into operation when most of the boats were blown over with their occupants thrown into the sea.
A number were detained in hospital for hypothermia and other minor injuries, but nobody was seriously hurt.
The sailing club said 115 boats raced with 141 competitors, along with 22 rescue boats and three support yachts. Many of the teenagers brushed off the experience, with some saying it was exciting while some some parents of the children blaming the media for causing an over-reaction by the emergency services.
Clearly with the wind in his sails, the club spokesman and race organizer, Patrick Blaney, stated that “99 times out of 100” the club’s boats would have set sail in Thursday’s conditions.
The regatta was cancelled on Friday however, with Blaney claiming the weather was “significantly worse”. However, the Irish Meteorological Office said the opposite was the case.
Other sailors cursing the foul weather include two men arrested by Garda