Tag Archives: West Cork
Diesel prices and post-Brexit quotas add to fishermen’s woes
Each time West Cork fisherman Daniel Healy sets out to sea, he wonders whether it’s worth his time. Soaring diesel prices, he said, are putting his livelihood at risk. “Per trip, with five days out, at 1,000 litres a day – that’s over €5,000. It’s a big bill for me,” Mr Healy told Prime Time. He has been fishing from Castletownbere for the last 29 years. For the first time, he has to worry whether he can pay the wages of his crew. The diesel is probably taking about nearly half of our gross earnings, every trip,” he said. “The crew were wondering where all the money was going, until I showed them the receipts and how much the fuel is.” But, due to stricter post-Brexit quotas that were introduced last year, fishermen cannot increase their catch to compensate for their losses. >click to read< 18:50
Sunken fishing trawler is raised from the depths of a West Cork harbour
The busy West Cork fishing port of Union Hall has seen the last of the MV Sceptre, the 23m fishing trawler that sank at its dock in February of this year, prompting a major operation to contain any possible pollutants. The operation to raise and remove the old trawler, which sank at the berth she had not moved from for over 5 years, was captured on camera by Cork County Council, documenting the precise and skilled work needed to successfully deal with the sunken hulk. Video, >click to watch/read< -07:58
West Cork Fishermen celebrate 50th anniversary by buying respite house for local charity despite ‘tough times’
A group of fishermen in West Cork have bought and donated a house worth 250k to a local charity that works with over 750 adults and children with intellectual disabilities, even though they say the fishing industry is experiencing “extremely difficult times.” “We wanted to do something to mark our 50th anniversary that our founding members and every Castletownbere who has lost their lives at sea would be proud of, we’ve never been about glitz and glamour and we’d no interest in a big party, we’ve always been about community,” John Nolan, the General Manager of the co-op said. >click to read< 06:50
Castletownbere fishermen give away fish to locals in West Cork
Over the last number of days communities across the country have come together to support each other and the latest story of goodwill comes from Castletownbere. Skippers and fishermen from the town filleted and bagged 40 boxes of fish to give away to the local communities in Castletownbere and Bantry. Several boats brought the fish to shore and they were then taken to Castletownbere Fishermen’s Co Op where they were filleted under hygiene controls by fishermen and their families. Video, >click to read< 14:08
Inside Ireland’s last traditional boatyard, Hegarty’s Boatyard in Oldcourt
It is the last surviving traditional wooden boatyard in Ireland. The subject of a new photographic book by Kevin O’Farrell, the boatyard is full of great big hulks of wooden boats in various states of refurbishment.,, In an era of fibreglass boats, Hegarty is operating in a world that is fast disappearing. Once, traditional boat building took place all around the coast, but Hegarty’s Boatyard is out on its own now, miraculously still doing a steady trade, and enabling the revival of the once-lost West Cork mackerel yawls. Lots of photo’s, >click to read< 13:16
Crew walk off cockroach-infested trawler in West Cork
Indonesian crew members of the UK-registered ship detained in West Cork last week walked off the vessel last night and sought to be put up by Irish officials to enable them to plan for a journey home, writes Stephen Rogers.Earlier, Britain’s Marine and Coastguard Agency (MCA) confirmed that its inspector had examined the trawler Christian M, which had been detained by Irish authorities for a number of issues including a significant cockroach infestation and crewing issues. click here to read the story 14:09
