Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Like others I welcome the publication of the air accident report into the R116 tragedy, which will now enable the long-awaited inquest to go ahead. My thoughts are with the families of Dara Fitzpatrick, Mark Duffy, Paul Ormsby and Ciarán Smith.

Those of us who live on the Mullet Peninsula and the wider Mayo area share a special affinity with these families and with the crew. The whole community took them into their hearts as the tragedy unfolded in the early hours of 14 March 2017. Their courage and dedication are forever remembered when we look out on Black Rock and Blacksod Bay. I take this opportunity to thank all those in the community who were involved, all the agencies that were involved on the ground, the local gardaí, the people from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, RNLI, the fishermen and so many others who pulled together in that awful time following that terrible accident. We are constantly mindful that the bodies of winchmen Paul Ormsby and Ciarán Smith have not yet been recovered.

As I talk about this, I am very conscious not to jeopardise any future legal actions.

That curtails what I will say. The Minister has detailed many actions in his contribution, but the question is why it has taken so long. We automatically trusted what was in this report and that the system worked. We trusted that the system worked to keep crews and volunteers safe so we are shocked to find out this was not the case. We ask why issues have been identified and not rectified. It is very plain that they were identified but nobody was listening.

We can consider Black Rock and why a natural structure the size and height of the island did not appear in the mapping. It is absolutely unbelievable. Why do agencies have a common purpose but do not act more holistically? Why did we have so much confusion? We ask what lessons can be learned and how we can procure cutting-edge equipment that we need while safeguarding against glitches in the new technology. How do we ensure consistency in equipment with training and standards? Are the regulatory and legislative structures appropriate and consistent across the entire SAR framework, including aviation, working at height, cliff, land and boat rescue? Do we need to look more globally to benchmark best practices in regulation, training and operation?

Unfortunately, all this is too late for Dara, Mark, Paul and Ciarán but we must not let their lives and deaths be in vain. The 42 recommendations must be implemented and I am glad to hear the Minister detail how that will happen. Those accountable for overseeing the implementation of these recommendations must be known because we must have accountability within the system. It is vital that lessons are learned from what has occurred here to ensure all crews and volunteers can work safely and have confidence that they are protected while they go about the important work they do. There must be robust and thorough action from the Minister, the Department of Transport, the Irish Coast Guard and those involved with SAR operations to ensure the measures are put in place. Crews must have confidence in their working environment and the public must have confidence in that environment too.

As my colleague, Deputy Darren O'Rourke, has said, we need a timeline and continuous reviews and updates. We owe that to those who lost their lives and gave their lives in service. This must never happen again. We will always ask why and always ask if this could have been avoided. People need to answer those questions. My thoughts this evening are with the families, who as I say will always be in the hearts of the people of Mayo and Erris.

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