Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I, too, would like to congratulate all members of the Naval Service for their work since the first deployment. I had the privilege of visiting the crew members of the LE James Joycelast month to witness at first hand the work they carry out on an ongoing basis. The Deputy spoke about the very difficult situations faced by the Naval Service. The week before my visit to the LE James Joyce, the crew had brought on board 16 bodies recovered from under a wooden vessel. There had been women and children on board the vessel and some had lost their lives. It is very difficult for some members of our Naval Service when they come across situations like that. I applaud them for their work.

The reason for the drop in the number of boats crossing the Mediterranean Sea was due to severe weather conditions but over the last month or six weeks, there has been quite a steady flow of migrants crossing in rubber or wooden vessels.

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