Dennis Deery

I’ve commented before about the incredible wind and waves we’ve seen on the southeast coast this winter. What I don’t think I’ve mentioned is that many of the coastal villages in this area are fishing villages. As you might guess, that combination can often spell tragedy, and that’s been the case over the last few days. Last Wednesday night and Thursday morning, two fishing trawlers sank just north of here. Two crew members from one of the boats were rescued after 20 hours in a life raft, while two of their crewmates and five crewmen from the other boat are still missing and presumed dead. The wreckage of one boat has been found resting in about 30 meters of water 2.5 miles off-shore, while wreckage from the other boat has been washing ashore.

Searches continue, so we see a lot of activity here, from helicopters overhead to volunteers walking along the coast searching for traces. One of the boats was based in Dunmore East, the next town north of us on the coast, about 5 miles away, while the other was based in Kinsale, about 70 miles south of here. The evening news continues to feature reports from both of these towns.

What absolutely astounds me is how much tragedy these fishing families have to bear. In the news reports about the families, we hear how many family members have been lost at sea, how many people these communities have lost. Dunmore East, a town of just over 1,500, has a memorial listing the names of area residents lost at sea in the past century - the memorial numbers 153 names, and will soon have several more.