Two people were rescued from a yacht off St John’s Point overnight.
The yacht ran aground in darkness just after 4am.
Killybegs Coast Guard were alerted to the emergency and rushed the the scene.
However, heavy scenes meant the lifeboat crew could not reach the vessel safely to take the crew off the stricken vessel.
Instead, the Rescue 118 helicopter was alerted and flew from their base in Sligo to join the rescue.
The two people were eventually winched from the boat to safety and it is not understood that anybody was hurt.
A spokesman for the Killybegs Coast Guard praised all involved in the mission.