Man airlifted to hospital after surfing accident

Pat Flynn

A man has been airlifted to hospital after he was injured in a surfing accident in West Clare on Tuesday morning.

The alarm was raised at around 8am when the Irish Coast Guard received a report of an incident in Ballard Bay, south of Doonbeg.

The Kilkee unit of the Coast Guard and National Ambulance Service were alerted, while the Shannon-based search and rescue helicopter was also tasked to the scene.

A large group had gathered in the area to surf the well-known Riley’s Wave, which can appear during periods of large swell, attracting surfers and bodyboarders from all over the world.

It is understood that the casualty sustained a head injury and was cared for by his companions until emergency services arrived. A team of surf-rescue personnel on jet-skis were also on hand to provide support to the surfers.

Rescue 115’s winchman/paramedic was winched down to the rocks below, where the casualty was being looked after on a rock slab beneath the cliffs. The operation was described as "challenging."

The man was flown to University Hospital Limerick for treatment.

In September this year, a man was airlifted to hospital after he was reported to have gotten into difficulty while surfing in the same area.

The Kilkee unit of the Irish Coast Guard and Rescue 115 responded to that incident. The injured man was winched on board the helicopter and airlifted to University Hospital Galway for treatment.

In 2016, a bodyboarder was airlifted to hospital after he was injured in the same area, while a year earlier, a world-champion bodyboarder was seriously injured at the same location and also had to be flown to hospital for treatment.