An Irish Coast Guard winchman from Fivemiletown, who rescued a fisherman who had been washed overboard a vessel off the Donegal Coast earlier this year, recently received special recognition.

Gary Robertson, a well known paramedic with the Ambulance Service for many years, was at the National Marine Gallantry and Meritorious Service Awards 2016 ceremony in Dublin on Friday night, October 15, when he received the Michael Heffernan Gold Medal for Marine Gallantry.

Currently working for the Irish Coastguard Search and Rescue Helicopter, Gary explained that back in April the fisherman got washed overboard a vessel in the vicinity of Innisinny island. He recalled that when they got there, an RNLI all weather boat and an Irish Coastguard rescue boat could not reach the man. “It was too close into the rocks,” said Gary, who also spoke about the “breaking waves.”

During the particular mission, Gary was lowered from the helicopter with a winch cable into the surf and was able to secure him, although he spoke about the difficulties involved. It was only when he got down, he realised the man was wrapped in ropes.

According to Gary the man had been floating about 20 feet from the boat but when trying to secure him he realised he had ropes wrapped around his body and arms; he had to cut the ropes free with a knife before winching him clear off the water and back up to the helicopter. The boat just went down then, said Gary.

When the man was brought into the helicopter, Gary says he was “profoundly hypothermic” and he attended to him as a paramedic. The man was taken to Letterkenny Hospital, about a 10 minutes flight from the scene.

Gary was awarded the Medal in recognition of this rescue, which he admitted due to the sea conditions on the day had been quite “physically challenging” to get the man secured and free from the ropes. He said he had learned afterwards that the man had made a good recovery.

Gary has been a winchman for five years with Canadian Helicopters, which provides rescue on behalf of the coastguard in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. 

In reference to Gary’s award, the recent ceremony at Farmleigh House in Phoenix Park, heard that on “Saturday, April 9, 2016, MRSC Malin received a 999 call reporting a vessel in difficulty and a person in the water off Innisinny Island, Co. Donegal. The only chance for survival for the casualty was for rescue by helicopter.

Winchman Gary Robertson was deployed to the man in the water. As Gary reached the casualty however, it became apparent that the casualty was trapped and tangled in the ropes of the sinking vessel. With waves crashing over both men in the water, Gary had to get the casualty into the rescue strop and protect his airway and use his safety knife to cut away the ropes entangling the fisherman.

Finally, the fisherman was freed and winched to the helicopter and was transferred to hospital. For showing bravery and at huge peril to his own safety, in an effort to save a life, the Michael Heffernan Gold Medal for Marine Gallantry was awarded to Gary Robertson”.

On receiving his Gold Medal, Gary said he was ‘pleased and surprised’. “It’s nice to be recognised for what we do,” said Gary, adding that “it was not an individual effort but very much a helicopter crew effort.” He regarded the rescue as a team effort and he acknowledged everyone involved – including the RNLI all weather lifeboat and the Coastguard rescue boat who attended the scene.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross, T.D. praised the “courageous achievements and service of this group of brave Irish men and women who in many cases place themselves in danger in order that others might be safe on our waterways.”