A fisherman survived 18 hours in a life raft while his friend remains missing after their fishing boat, Emerald Dawn, sank off the coast of Co Down on Wednesday.
The alert for the missing craft with two crewmen aboard, Mr Shane Murnaghan (28) and Mr Colin Donnelly (30), was raised after it failed to return to Kilkeel harbour around 1 p.m. on Wednesday.
A major rescue operation was immediately mounted as the family and friends of the missing men maintained a vigil in Kilkeel through Wednesday night and yesterday for the fishermen.
As hope began to diminish word came through around noon yesterday that a merchant vessel, Moon Dance, had rescued Mr Murnaghan about nine miles south of the Isle of Man. He had been about 18 hours in the raft at that stage.
He was airlifted by RAF helicopter to the Nobles Hospital in Douglas on the island. Although suffering from hypothermia, he was able to walk from the helicopter into the hospital for treatment.
His family told friends at Kilkeel Harbour that the first thing he did was inquire about the condition of his friend, Mr Donnelly. Mr Murnaghan phoned his family and explained that after their boat sank they both scrambled to get on to the life raft.
He told his family that as he pulled himself on to the raft he briefly lost sight of Mr Donnelly, and when he turned around to assist him on board, he had disappeared from view.
Mr Murnaghan's father, Henry, said the family were profoundly relieved at the rescue of his son but they were terribly distressed that Mr Donnelly was still missing. He described Mr Donnelly as like a son to him and prayed that he too might yet be found.
The men had been fishing for lobster and crab when Emerald Dawn sank. Police divers found the boat in about 40 metres of water about six miles off Kilkeel yesterday.
Police said it was too early to say what caused the boat to sink. They said there was little apparent major damage to the craft.
Local fishermen joined in the search through Wednesday and yesterday. Five lifeboats from Kilkeel, Newcastle, Donaghadee, the Isle of Man and Clogher Head were involved in the search which was co-ordinated by the coastguard in Liverpool.
The British fisheries protection vessel, Ken Vickers, which has highly sophisticated sonar equipment, also took part. The coastguard called off the official search as darkness fell last night. The search was resuming at first light today.
Members of the Greene family from Kilkeel also joined the Murnaghan and Donnelly families during their vigil. The Greenes lost three members of their family when their boat sank in February 2002.
