Six people and a dog rescued from boats on Lough Ree in past 48 hours

People going out on Lough Ree are being encouraged to conduct a good safety check on their equipment, and make sure they’ve told someone where they’re going and what time they expect to return.

The warning comes in the wake of 6 people and a family pet having to be rescued by Lough Ree RNLI over the past couple of days.

One of the incidents involved a couple on a private cruiser which ran aground in Gailey Bay near Portrunny on Saturday evening, and the second happened yesterday evening when four people and a family pet had to be taken to safety when their boat engine failed near Nun’s Island.

A new boathouse for Lough Ree RNLI is near completion at Coosan Point, Athlone and

public support is welcome on the charity’s ‘go fund me’ page.