Missing boat located in 30 foot of water

Athlone Sub Aqua Club members have confirmed that a sunken vessel is a boat that has been lost on Lough Ree for eight years.

On June 1, 2015, classic boat Old's Cool sank on Lough Ree whilst on passage from Lanesborough to Athlone. Since then, owner and skipper Fergal Butler has spent numerous hours scanning the lakebed in the hope of locating his lost boat.

Old's Cool was designed and built by Fergal in 2013 and finished off to an extremely high standard. Old's Cool can only be described as a craft that would not be out of place in Monte Carlo or on the set of a James Bond movie, with her sleek lines and varnished exterior. Powered by a 350hp, V8 inboard petrol engine, the vessel was capable of speeds more than 80mph.

Recently, whilst out searching for his boat, Fergal identified a potential wreck target southwest of Nun's Island on his side scan sonar unit.

Coordinates were calculated and subsequently passed on to the Athlone Sub Aqua Club.

On Saturday, January 28 a team from Athlone Sub Aqua Club travelled to Fergal's coordinates and dropped a 'Shot Line' at the given position. Club divers Ethan Devaney and Johnny Roche geared up and entered the cold, murky January waters of Lough Ree. On descending the 'Shot Line' to the lakebed, and after completing a number of circular line searches, the two divers returned to the surface to confirm that they had indeed located the wreck of Old's Cool.

The divers reported that the vessel is lying upside down in approximately 30ft of water.

The Athlone Sub Aqua Club wishes Fergal every success in raising Old's Cool and restoring her to its former glory.