Parents warned to be vigilant after girl (6) gets swept out to sea

The public is being warned to be vigilant after changing tides resulted in a six-year-old girl being stranded at sea yesterday.

Coast Guards at Malin Head were called to action after a young girl became stranded at sea at around 4pm yesterday in Gaoth Dobhair in Donegal. The search for the girl included a rescue helicopter, lifeboat and a local unit from the area. A rescue helicopter brought the girl to safety where she was assessed by paramedics and was found to be unharmed. And this wasn’t the only incident in the area yesterday. Three kayakers got into difficulty because of the rough tides yesterday, however, nobody was injured.

“It was the turn of the tide and the winds were northeasterly. The winds basically picked up and were blowing off the land and the tide then was actually flooding in as well,” the Coast Guard said of conditions. “So it was this combination, as well as the rip currents.”

They are now warning parents to be extremely vigilant if they are bringing children to the coast. They are also warning of the dangers of inflatable beds, as children can easily be swept out to sea without even realising it.