Coast Guard volunteers save nearly 380 lives in 2019
Irish Coast Guard units attended 1,075 incidents throughout the year, according to their end of year statement.
The Coast Guard’s three Rescue Coordination Centres at Malin Head, Valentia Island, and Dublin managed 2,487 incidents in the past year, compared with 2,647 for 2018 and 2,503 incidents in 2017.
More than 770 missions were flown by the Coast Guard Helicopter, with 378 lives saved.
The nationwide network of more than 940 volunteers also saw 123 emergency missions flown from offshore to the mainland.
Meanwhile, the busiest transfer route between hospitals was from Letterkenny to University Hospital Galway.
The Coast Guard also cautioned against using mobile phones as a suitable substitute for emergency communication at sea.
They said: "Phone coverage at sea is limited and unreliable. Mobile phones are also highly susceptible to failure due to water ingress."
