Young Athlone lifesaver praised for Coosan Point water rescue
by Morgan Fagg and Adrian Cusack
An Athlone teenager is to be nominated for a national water safety award as a result of his heroic actions in helping to rescue a girl who got into difficulty at Coosan Point last summer.
Eoin Dooley (16), from Mayfield Grove, recounted the details of the rescue when the Westmeath Water Safety local area committee gathered for its AGM on Thursday last.
The Transition Year student at Athlone Community College was one of two locals whose quick actions came to the aid of a young girl who had fallen off an inflatable lilo, and into the water, at Coosan Point on July 12 last.
Eoin was in the water on a paddle board at the time and - as it happens - he had just completed a Rescue 3 lifesaving course in Athlone Regional Sports Centre in the preceding days.
The local teenager wasted no time in putting that lifesaving course to good use.
When he saw the girl in trouble he immediately jumped in to help keep her head above the water's surface.
Jude Kilmartin, a member of Athlone Sub Aqua, was also quick to enter the water to get to the stricken girl, even forgetting to take his phone out of his pocket as he went into the water after seeing the girl in difficulty.
Eoin started to bring the girl to the shore with Jude Kilmartin, who then brought her the rest of the way ashore to receive follow-up treatment from an experienced rescue diver trained to administer oxygen.
The local Westmeath Water Safety committee said the girl was very lucky to have two people looking out for her when her inflatable capsized, adding that the incident underscores the importance of learning swimming and taking part in lifesaving courses.
The Water Safety committee is now planning to nominate Eoin for a Seiko 'Just in Time' award, which is a lifesaving award presented on behalf of Water Safety Ireland at its national awards ceremony each year.
Nuala Moroney, secretary of the local area committee of Water Safety Ireland, described the Athlone youth by saying: "Eoin has always been a pleasure to teach. He is a very level-headed young lad, very competent in water, and very aware of the importance of safety in the water."
Eoin's proud uncle Julian Dooley described the nature of the rescue, saying: "Witnessing a teenager intervene in the manner that Eoin did sends a great message to other teenagers about the role they can play in relation to water safety."
Since the incident, Jude Kilmartin, who is also part of Athlone River Safety Awareness, has been busy working with different groups to try to obtain a 'River Rescue Robot' for Coosan Point.
The next local water safety course will be held over Easter, from April 6 to 10, and anyone interested in getting involved in promoting water safety locally should contact westmeathchair@watersafety.ie