Hopes fade for three other missing crew members after Capt Dara Fitzpatrick was found in waters off Co Mayo coast

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

A decorated Irish Coast Guard (IRCG) pilot whose aircraft is believed to have crashed into the Atlantic Ocean has died hours after she was rescued.

Capt Dara Fitzpatrick was found alive in waters off the County Mayo coast but later died in hospital, the IRCG said. She had been decorated for bravery in rescue missions and had appeared in an RTE television series about Ireland’s emergency services.

A huge search is still under way involving the Irish Naval Service, navy divers, RNLI all-weather boats and six local fishing vessels to find the three remaining crew of IRCG helicopter 116, but hopes are fading.

The Dublin-based crew had flown to provide cover for another IRCG helicopter carrying out a medical evacuation from a UK-registered fishing boat 150 miles off the Mayo coast. It is understood a man on board had suffered a heart attack.



A small amount of debris, including what is believed to be a helicopter fuel tank, has been located on the shore near Blacksod in Mayo, where the crew had landed to refuel after arriving from Dublin.



IRCG’s director, Eugene Clonan, described the incident as a dark day for emergency services. He said helicopter 116 was a very new Sikorsky S92 and had regular maintenance checks.

Gerard Flynn, the IRCG’s search and rescue operations manager said that no warning was given about the helicopter getting into difficulties in the area before it disappeared.



“This was a shock, the helicopter just simply disappeared. Communication was lost. Once communication was lost, an emergency procedure was initiated, a search was immediately initiated,” he said.



Locals in Mayo said visibility had been poor and seas rough with swells as high as five metres since late on Monday night. The weather in the area is expected to deteriorate later, creating more problems for the search operation.

A spokesperson for Ireland’s prime minister, Enda Kenny, who is visiting Donald Trump in the White House this week, said: “The taoiseach is being briefed regularly here in the US on the coastguard helicopter accident that has taken place off the coast of Mayo.

“His thoughts are with the families of the brave crew and with the emergency crews currently working in the area.”



The ICRG dealt with 2,500 incidents last year and saved more than 400 lives.



Investigators from Ireland’s Air Accident Investigation Unit are at the scene.