Don't attempt a rescue from water unless you are trained and qualified. This was the message from Irish Water Safety last night as it presented awards to three gardaí among a list of heroes.
Trainee garda Mr Colm Finnerty, who pulled three people from the Liffey at Wolfe Tone Quay in December, was one of the three gardaí to receive recognition at the annual Irish Water Safety (IWS) awards.
Mr Chaim Factor, a furniture designer who rescued Ms Lisa Landau from her upturned car in a Wicklow bog in October, was also a nominee for the Seiko Just In Time/IWS presentations, made by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, in the National Concert Hall, Dublin.
The three gardaí had all undergone IWS lifesaving training at Templemore College, Co Tipperary, IWS chief executive, Lieut Cdr John Leech, noted. "The important thing is not to risk your own life in an act of bravado."
The list of award winners included a NUI Galway final-year student, Mr Daniel McLean, who was on his way to his final exams in May 2001 when he spotted a man in trouble in Galway's Eglinton Canal and went to his aid. Mr McLean then headed to the campus and completed the final exam successfully.
A Dún Laoghaire harbour constable, Mr John O'Connor, who could not swim himself, also received recognition for his quick-witted rescue of a man in the water at the East Pier in the harbour in November.
Mr O'Connor seized a ring buoy, secured it to a ladder on the pier and passed it to the man in difficulty. He called for assistance on his VHF radio.
One of the youngest award winners was Ian Fallon (15), who assisted a man off Portmarnock, Co Dublin, in July 2001.
Ms Laura Horan pulled a man from the bottom of a swimming pool in Portugal last summer and gave him artificial respiration until the emergency services arrived. Her rescue was a reminder that pools in European resorts often do not have lifeguards, the IWS said yesterday.
Mr Tony Youlten, a retired boat builder who has already been decorated by the German government for his rescue of 14 German students who had capsized from kayaks on Lough Corrib, was a recipient, and there were a series of service awards to IWS volunteers who instruct in lifesaving.
The former flag officer of the Naval Service, Commodore John Kavanagh; Mr Paddy Boyd, chief executive of the Irish Sailing Association; and Mr Michael Somers, an IWS volunteer in Carlow, received International Lifesaving Federation citation awards.
