Local heroes honoured for lifesaving rescue of young girl in Athlone
Two locals were presented with a national award in Dublin this week for their swift and courageous action in helping to rescue a young girl who got into difficulty in the water at Coosan Point last year.
Fifth-year Athlone Community College student Eoin Dooley (16), and Jude Kilmartin, who has long been involved in water-based activities locally, received Seiko 'Just In Time' rescue awards at an event hosted by Water Safety Ireland in Dublin's Mansion House on Tuesday afternoon.
The incident for which they were honoured unfolded on the afternoon of Saturday, July 12, 2025. That was one of the hottest days of the year, with temperatures approaching 30 degrees locally, and a large number of people were gathered at Coosan Point.
Eoin Dooley was in the water on a stand-up paddle board when he noticed a young girl who got into trouble after falling off an inflatable device. The girl, who had been drifting into deeper water, began "flailing about" and her head was starting to go under the water.
The teenager immediately jumped into the water, as did Jude Kilmartin who had spotted her distress from a boat he was on at the time. The incident unfolded so quickly that Jude jumped in with his mobile phone still in the pocket of his shorts!
Together, Eoin and Jude came to the young girl's aid and guided her safely to the shore, where she was reunited with her mother and two siblings. She then received further care from an Athlone Sub Aqua rescue diver trained in administering oxygen. Thankfully, the girl made a full recovery.
Eoin, from Mayfield Grove, said he was happy to receive the rescue award this week but he believes anyone who was confident in the water would have done the same if they had seen the incident unfold on the day.
Coincidentally, he had just completed a Rescue 3 lifesaving course in Athlone Regional Sports Centre the day before the girl got into difficulty at Coosan Point - so he wasted no time in putting those new skills to use!
"You risked your own life to save somebody else's. That is something you'll never forget," Jude told Eoin when the pair were reunited at Coosan Point for a photograph last Friday.
Jude, who has been involved over the years with Athlone Sub Aqua, Lough Ree RNLI, and Athlone River Safety Awareness, said one positive to emerge from the incident last year was a successful effort to secure a 'River Rescue Robot' for Coosan Point.
In recent years two of these 'robots' - which are essentially remote-controlled lifebuoys that can be steered toward a person in distress in the water - were put in place at The Strand and beside Sean's Bar in Athlone town.
Jude said a fundraiser held by Athlone Triathlon Club had raised €10,000 to secure a third 'robot', and that this would now be put in place at Coosan Point within the next couple of weeks.
"The rescue robot has saved lives in Athlone already. So, in fairness, what happened that day has led to this good outcome (of one being organised for Coosan Point)," he said.
Jude has been involved in a number of incidents on the water over the years, helping to rescue others from the water in the Shannon, at Lough Key Forest Park, and in Kinvara. He said rescues often come down to "being in the right place at the right time, and being confident in the water".
He once had a serious incident of his own when he ended up in the sea unexpectedly in county Kerry.
"My own nearest-death experience in water came when we were moving a boat from Valencia up to Athlone - a local boat that was being kept down there.
"The owner and another guy were with me, and both of them were trained with the RNLI, thank God, because the boat went on fire eight miles off shore.
"We had to jump into the sea, and abandon it. So it's good to be able to swim! You just can't be careful enough around water," said Jude.
Morgan Fagg of Westmeath Water Safety nominated Eoin Dooley and Jude Kilmartin for the Seiko 'Just In Time' Rescue Award. He noted that Westmeath had tragically seen the loss of two young lives in the water in recent months.
Morgan said that, on July 12, 2025, "two brave individuals quickly acted, Jude with his years of experience of search and rescue, and Eoin who had just completed his Rescue 3 course the day before".
"I would encourage everyone to learn to swim and learn some lifesaving techniques, because you never know when they will be needed," he said.
"I invited Eoin to be our guest of honour at the AGM for Westmeath Water Safety in March and I hope he will continue promoting water safety locally long into the future.
"We need more successes like this 'Just in Time' award, and I was so happy on behalf of the local area committee of Water Safety Ireland to be able to nominate these two local heroes."
Morgan added that anyone interested in getting involved with Westmeath Water Safety would be welcome to contact: westmeathchair@watersafety.ie