Late coastguard volunteer Caitríona Lucas awarded Clare Person of the Year

Not in Caitríona Lucas’s wildest dreams would she have imagined that she would have had such an effect on people.

That is according to the late coastguard’s husband, Bernard Lucas, who was speaking minutes before accepting a posthumous Clare Person of the Year Award on behalf of his wife.

Last September, the 41-year-old mother of two became the first coastguard volunteer to die in the line of duty during a search and recovery operation off the coast at Kilkee. There were three volunteers on board the Kilkee Coast Guard search and rescue boat when it capsized.