Seven rescued off Dún Laoghaire

Seven people have been rescued uninjured after a fire on board a yacht in Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin this afternoon.

The alarm was raised shortly after midday when the 37ft (11m x 4m) yacht was still within the confines of the harbour.

The yacht, Desert Star, issued a "pan-pan" broadcast, seeking assistance from all vessels within the area due to a fire on board, a spokeswoman for the Department of Transport said.

The Coast Guard responded to the call and tasked the all-weather lifeboat, the inshore lifeboat and the helicopter to the scene.

By 12.45pm the seven people on board had been removed to safety by the lifeboat. Two lifeboat crew went on board the yacht to extinguish the fire.

The boat was towed in and brought alongside the harbour where the fire brigade was waiting.

The Coast Guard helicopter, Dun Laoghaire RNLI lifeboat, Dublin fire brigade and the Irish Lights boat were all involved in the rescue.

Nearby a kite surfer was rescued off the coast of Sandymount in Dublin. A call for help was received by the Dublin Marine Rescue Coordination centre at 12.24pm when the kite surfer got into difficulty in an area south of the stacks, a spokeswoman for the Department of Transport said.

Both the Coast Guard helicopter and Dun Laoghaire inshore lifeboat were tasked to the scene. The lifeboat reached the kite surfer by 12.49pm and helped them on board and brought them ashore. The surfer did not need medical treatment.