Father-of-two dead after boat capsizes
The dead man was named locally last night as Ger O’Driscoll, a married father with a teenage son and daughter.
He was in his 50s and lived in Castletownbere, Co Cork.
Mr O’Driscoll, originally from Allihies, was a respected and popular full-time fisherman.
The other fisherman was named as William Power, a single man in his early 30s, also from Castletownbere.
Mr Power survived after spending almost an hour swimming through cold and heavy seas to raise the alarm.
Both men were very experienced fishermen and were said by locals to have been very safety-conscious.
Locals also said it was a miracle that Mr Power survived. He was described as a very strong and powerfully-built man.
The tragic accident happened about three miles west of Castletownbere Harbour.
The two men had set out from the harbour early yesterday morning in a 20ft punt to either set or collect shrimp pots.
Both were wearing life-jackets and protective gear.
They were working close to the shore when their boat appears to have capsized, sometime before 10am.
Both men were thrown into the sea. Conditions at the time were rough, with heavy showers and squalls.
Mr Power managed to swim to the shore where he climbed rocks and ran to a nearby house to raise the alarm.
Valentia Coastguard immediately tasked the Castletownbere Lifeboat, the Castletownbere coastguard unit, and the rescue helicopter from Shannon, which was diverted from an exercise mission.
The lifeboat launched at 10.45am and arrived at the scene within 15 minutes.
Following a brief search, Mr O’Driscoll’s body was recovered from the sea close to the shore near Pulleen Harbour, about a mile west of Castletownbere.
It is understood he may have succumbed to the cold before drowning. The inverted boat was found drifting nearby.
Mr Power was treated for shock and hypothermia by a local GP and was recovering from his ordeal last night.
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