By Lisa Ramsden
A local rowing club has praised five of its members for the vital role they played in a sea rescue at the weekend. Their decision to take to the water just a few minutes earlier than planned may have proved a pivotal point in the successful outcome.
Dundrum Coastal Rowing Club’s Carolyn Rooney, Jackie Barbour, Rosemary Martin, Bernadette McDowell, and Aideen McLaughlin had headed out on Saturday afternoon for a routine training exercise in Dundrum’s Inner Bay when they spotted something in the water in the distance.
It turned out to be a local man, who, along with his young daughter, had been tipped off their jetski and were unable to get back on. With the man struggling to make much headway, the young girl used the whistle on her lifejacket in an attempt to summon help.
Coincidentally, and fortunately for the pair, the local rowers had, around the same time, spotted the adrift jet-ski. The women put their experience to good use and quickly rowed over. As they approached, they spotted the man, who by this stage was suffering the effects of the cold water and shock, in the water. His daughter had already reached dry land.
Unable to bring him onto their boat, they quickly decided the best option was to carefully bring him alongside and row him back through the water. He managed to grab hold of an oar, and they rowed their way back across the bay and brought him ashore, where he was passed into the care of paramedics and members of Newcastle and Kilkeel Coastguard teams.
In a statement issued following the weekend’s rescue, the Dundrum club proudly praised the five women for “the calmness, teamwork, and skill shown” in what it admitted “could have been a far more serious situation.”
A spokesperson explained: “Members of Dundrum Coastal Rowing Club were involved in assisting a jet skier in difficulty in Dundrum Bay over the weekend. While training on the bay, a crew was alerted to someone in the water who had been thrown from their jet-ski. One individual was able to make their way safely to the shore, while our crew responded immediately to assist the second person, helping them safely back to shore.”
Read the full story in the current issue of the Mourne Observer.
