A COUPLE who decided to take in the stunning snow scenes of Glendalough on Christmas Day ended up having to be rescued when they tried to cross the Sally Gap.
The man and woman, both in their late 20s, were following a route to their south Co Dublin home using a satellite navigator through Glenmacnass when their 4x4 rented car became bogged down in snow 300 metres from the Sally Gap in Co Wicklow.
Contact was made with the mountain rescue services at 7.40pm and they made their way to the scene using two 4x4s, reaching the stranded couple around 9pm. It took the team about one hour to get the couple to Laragh and safety.
The couple are foreigners living in this country for a number of years.“It was their first time to experience snow, and [they] wanted to imbibe the picturesque beauty that was snow-clad Glendalough with deer in the valley,” said Paul Gilbert of the mountain rescue service. “They were guided by the sat-nav in their rented vehicle, and their 4x4 was fitted with winter tyres. It proves that a vehicle, no matter how well-equipped, can get into trouble in this type of weather.”
Hugh McLinden, public relations officer of the Glen of Imaal Mountain Rescue, said: ‘Many people who live or travel in the Wicklow Mountains would be familiar with the extremely difficult, and at times, impassible conditions of the Military Road. Unfortunately, the tourist couple appear not to realise the dangerous nature of the journey that their onboard computer was advising them to undertake.”
Emergency services responded to several other searches and medical evacuations over Christmas, but were put under additional pressure in the west due to a hoax call. The Irish Coast Guard’s Sligo-based Sikorsky helicopter and local gardaí were tasked by Malin Coast Guard on Christmas Eve when a caller reported that a child had fallen through ice.
The caller reported the incident had occurred near Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim. The helicopter and gardaí spent several hours combing the area, but could find no sign of any such incident. The matter has been referred to gardaí for investigation.
Malin Coast Guard also co-ordinated an air ambulance transfer on Christmas Eve in which a critically ill patient was flown from Sligo to Dublin.
Over the past three days, Irish Coast Guard shore-based units at Mulroy and Killybegs in Co Donegal, and Achill and Ballyglass in Co Mayo drove Health Service Executive (HSE) home care staff to and from elderly and invalided people using 4x4 vehicles to navigate snow and ice.
Both Achill and Ballyglass units were on the road throughout Christmas Day and did not finish until 9pm, according to Malin Coast Guard.