Coast Guard assists tourists cut off at Sandymount Strand

Rescue teams respond after two Finnish walkers stranded by tide on Tuesday evening

Two tourists were stranded on Sandymount Strand on Tuesday. Photograph: Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard.
Two tourists were stranded on Sandymount Strand on Tuesday. Photograph: Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard.

Two young Finnish tourists required the assistance of the Coast Guard on Tuesday evening after they were cut off by the tide while walking on Sandymount Strand.

The pair were spotted in the water by members of the public on Tuesday evening and members of the Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard, who happened to be deployed on a training exercise at the time, arrived soon after.

The rescue operation was assisted by the RNLI inshore lifeboat as well as helicopter Rescue 116, which was dispatched from its base at Dublin Airport.

Two teams also approached the tourists via the safest point on the beach. The tourists were able to find their way to land without the need for extraction or medical assistance.

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They were later transported back to their accommodation in the city.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard thanked everyone involved in the operation, and said it was an "emotional but thankful sight to see our helicopter, R116, keeping an eye on us" following the destruction of its predecessor and loss of the four-person crew in March.