Lough Ree search now in its 4th day

Up to 20 divers have resumed searching for missing Armagh fisherman Daryl Burke in Hodson Bay this morning.

The 30-year-old is feared drowned after the boat he was passenger in with three others capsized at Yew Point, a short distance from Hodson Bay, on Thursday.

Damien Delaney, Lifeboat Operations Manager with the RNLI, explained that the search is extremely slow with “poor visibility” in the water with depths of ten to twelve metres in places.

A team from Northern Ireland had a specialist search dog in the area yesterday, and on foot of the report they gave yesterday evening, the area pinpointed by the canine will be combed today, he added.

It’s understood information given by John Trimble, the other fisherman aboard, who is in a stable condition in Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe is also helping the divers. The third man in the boat, David Warnock, died in hospital on Friday.

Damien Delaney paid tribute to the “marvellous help” given by huge numbers of local people over the weekend to assist the search.

“It’s a terrible tragedy for all three families, we just want to find him and let them grieve,” he concluded.