Fresh from celebrating the official opening of their new €1.4M lifeboat station on Saturday, the Arranmore RNLI crew were tasked to a callout.
Having just finished dinner, relief coxswain Trevor Devereux from Wexford had to launch the lifeboat just after 8pm in response to a request from Malin Head Coast Guard to perform a medical evacuation from the island to Burtonport.
“It just seemed the perfect way to end a day of celebration, this is what we do,” Mr Devereux said.
“We are an emergency service on call 24/7 and ready to respond to a call for the lifeboat at a moment’s notice. We wish the patient a speedy recovery.”
He added it has been ‘a privilege’ to serve as relief coxswain on Arranmore and be part of the opening ceremony of the new station.
“The crew here are really welcoming as are the whole community, sometimes, as a relief coxswain it can be quite hard to leave home for several weeks but I have really enjoyed my time on Arranmore and I shall probably be back again while the new coxswain Kieran (O’Donnell) is undergoing training.”
The long awaited new Arranmore Lifeboat Station which was officially opened on Saturday afternoon. Picture: Declan Doherty
The new boathouse which was built at a cost of €1.4m has been designed to accommodate the lifeboat crew and to house the boarding boats that provide access to the station’s Severn Class Lifeboat.
In a ceremony held in glistening sunshine, lifeboat crew, fundraisers and station management were joined by locals, friends and special guests for the occasion.
Recently appointed RNLI Chief Executive Peter Sparkes handed the new boathouse into the care of the lifeboat station, in his first station opening in his new role while Donegal Person of the Year and well-known musician Moya Brennan unveiled a special plaque to commemorate the occasion.
In addition to the purpose-built boat halls, the station has been fitted with a new changing room, training room, crew area and offices. The boathouse design aids the RNLI’s goal to achieve zero carbon emissions through a reduction in gas and electricity consumption. A ground source heat pump heats the station and provides hot water while PV cells located on the South facing roof generate electricity.
The facilities will provide the station with a modern and fit-for-purpose building, designed to minimise maintenance and energy consumption.
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