This article is from page 6 of the 2006-10-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
ILLEGAL fireworks are wasting the resources of the lifeboat crews along the western coast, as their bright lights are often mistaken for distress flares.
The crew of Kilrush’s RNLI Rose West Inshore Lifeboat have been the latest victims of a false alarms.
Lifeboat Press Officer Charles Glynn told The Clare People that false alarms associated with fireworks were prevalent this time of year.
“It is a tricky situation as once the call comes in, the station is given the option to go out or decide if it is a false alarm.”
The Lifeboat PRO said that to date the Kilrush RNLI has reacted to 100 per cent of the calls by launching the lifeboat and carrying out a detailed search of the area.
Late on Sunday week last, the crew were contacted by the Irish Coast Guard following reported sightings of a white distress flare located between Glin Pier, Co. Limerick and Colman’s Point, Labasheeda on the Shannon Estuary.
Lifeboat Operations Manager, John Lamb said, “This is the third time that Kilrush lifeboat has responded to reported sightings of distress flares in the Glin/Ballylongford area and it is a cause for concern if unauthorised use of fireworks results in the waste of search and rescue resources.”
Both Mr Lamb and Mr Glynn said it was important however that all cases be reported.
Mr Glynn said that while most distress flares were red in colour with a parashoot attached to slow their landing, some of the flares on older boats were still white in colour.
He said that while most sailors and boat enthusiasts carried mobile phones and VHS for alerting the authorities in case of an emergency, flares were only used in extreme cases.
He said once a call reached the lifeboat station the crew preferred to err on the side of caution, but false alarms tied up a lot of its resources as up to ten people could be used in any one call out.
He said to date the majority of the “firework” false alarms had come from the North Limerick and Kerry area.
New legislation was introduced this year to put an end to such “displays”. Under the new laws those accused of misusing fireworks in public can face a €100,000 fine or a jail term, with those found guilty of smuggling fireworks into the State for sale, likely to face prison.
There is also a €10,000 fine for possessing fireworks.