Saving the stricken St Declan

Saving the stricken St Declan

On the week that Dauntless Courage arrives from the publishers to local shops, (December 2020) I asked author David Carroll to whet the appetite with a short guest blog about a rescue that is legendary in Dunmore East due to the skill and bravery shown by the lifeboat...

Rescuing the Helemar H. Dunmore East 1959

At 3am on a damp, misty February morning in 1959, Waterford harbour pilot, Pat Rogers was arriving into Dunmore for work when he spotted a ship close to the shore up the harbour. In a fresh SE wind a small ship had run onto the rocks at Ardnamult Head, or the Middle...

Castaways of the SS Beemsterdijk

When the 42 man crew of the Dutch owned SS Beemsterdijk departed Greenock for Cardiff in January 1941 none of them could have known that all but three would ever see their families again.  Those three fortunate men that survived had the keen eyes of the men in...

SS Irish Willow’s mercy mission to Dunmore East

On the 1st September 1942, the SS Irish Willow rounded Hook Head and steamed for Dunmore East. With her destination Waterford port, it was a familiar course. But rather than being met by the pilot boat, this time she was intercepted by the local life boat Annie...