Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

While listening to previous contributions, I was very struck by the affinity of Deputies, particularly those from coastal communities, with the services that serve us so well. The residents of my home town, Tramore, are no different in that they have a deep emotional connection with their helicopter rescue service, R117. The crew often train in the bay. There are nights – often stormy – when we hear the helicopter going over the town and realise it is responding to the call of somebody in trouble.

We have a deep connection with R116, as Deputy Shanahan mentioned. Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, who died along with winch operator, Paul Ormsby, winchman, Ciarán Smith, and Captain Mark Duffy when their helicopter crashed into Black Rock Island off the coast of Mayo on 14 March 2017, had spent ten years in Waterford with R117 and is very fondly remembered there. As Deputy Shanahan said, we still remember a similar tragedy, which occurred 22 years ago. After midnight on 22 July 1999, returning through dense fog on a rescue mission off the Waterford coast, the crew of R111 died when their helicopter hit the sand dunes at Tramore beach. Captain Dave O’Flaherty, Captain Mick Baker, Sergeant Paddy Mooney and Corporal Niall Byrne all lost their lives on the night. Their names remain in the memory of my local community, just as I know the names of the crew of R116 will be held in the memory of the community of Blacksod. The report acknowledges the support the local community gave to the large number of personnel, particularly the mariners who took part in the search and who worked in difficult sea conditions.

The final report of the Air Accident Investigation Unit on the R116 air accident attributes neither blame nor liability; that was not its job.

It is a technical report that lays out probable and contributory causes. There were clear failings with safety systems, processes, oversights and usability issues, all of which resulted in this needless loss of life. I welcome the 42 safety recommendations within the report. They are clearly explained and outline what is required in order to help prevent another aviation tragedy such as this, but we had reports after R111 as well. The responsibility to implement each of the 42 safety recommendations outlined in this air accident report spans the operator, CHC Ireland, as well as the Irish Aviation Authority, the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, the European Commission and the Department of Transport. I am glad the Department fully accepts all the recommendations of the report and has undertaken a programme of change to address several of the issues raised, but every agency with responsibility to implement these safety recommendations needs to do so, and quickly.

As is evident from the contributions in this debate, all coastal communities throughout the island really hold the volunteers and professionals involved in search and rescue in the highest regard. They respond when the buzzer goes and that is a significant act of courage. However, unless we match that sincere regard with the action required to ensure every barrier to their work is removed and the best safety systems are deployed for them, then it is only lip service. The RNLI lifeboat at Tramore has to contend with water quality issues when it launches. The RNLI lifeboat stationed at Helvick Harbour is on restricted service because of the build-up of silt in the harbour which makes it unnavigable at low tide. We need to ensure our search and rescue crews, both sea and air, have robust safeguards and the best possible working conditions. We can memorialise the brave people tragically lost in R116 and it is right and fitting to do so, but it would be a much more fitting tribute to make sure that we do not have another such tragedy and report in the future. Suaimhneas síoraí orthu.

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