Man in his 70s stranded overnight after boat runs aground

AN elderly man with a medical condition spent the night stranded on his boat when it ran aground on Lough Derg in Co Tipperary.

The alarm was raised at about 9.30am yesterday when shouts for help were heard coming from a 22-foot cruise boat, which had grounded close to Terryglass at the northern end of the lake.

A rescue operation was launched and on arrival at the scene, the crew of Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat discovered a man in his 70s and a dog on board the disabled vessel.

It is understood that the man, from Banagher in Co Offaly, had been fishing. The pensioner told his rescuers he had spent the night on the rocks after running aground late on Wednesday afternoon.

In the meantime, friends of the elderly gentleman had begun to gather around Portumna Bridge to the north of Lough Derg to begin a search of the lone boatman. They had noticed that his boat was not at its berth and that the man wasn’t at home.

After speaking to the man further, rescuers established he suffered from diabetes and spent some time in the water during the night trying to refloat his boat. The man appeared tired and pale but was otherwise unhurt.

Lough Derg RNLI spokeswoman and helm Eleanor Hooker said: “The man told us he had been stuck there since the previous evening. We learned that he suffered from diabetes but he had biscuits with him so he did eat during night. He got into the water at one point to try and refloat his boat but he allowed his clothes to dry on him which isn’t an ideal situation.”

The Irish Coast Guard, which co-ordinated the operation from their base at Valentia Island in Co Kerry, requested an ambulance to meet the lifeboat at Portumna. The pensioner was taken on tow back to Portumna where he was met by friends.

However, he declined to be taken to hospital.

“He didn’t want any fuss and didn’t want to go to hospital but we compromised with him and his friends promised they would take him to see a local doctor. The man was taken into care by his friends and the lifeboat return to base,” Ms Hooker added.

It is believed the man could have been stranded on the lake for up to 16 hours.