Lough Ree search for angler to resume this morning

A cadaver dog and an account given by a surviving fisherman were used to help in the search for a missing man on Lough Ree yesterday. Darryl Burke (30), a father of three from Co Armagh, was one of three men on board a boat that sank on the lake on Thursday. The anglers got into difficulty after setting off from Hodson Bay in Co Roscommon.

David Warnock (27) and John Trimble (60) were rescued by the lifeboat shortly after the boat sank. Mr Warnock later died in hospital. A major search involving sub-aqua units, lifeboat teams, a coast guard helicopter, anglers and the Garda water unit has been under way for Mr Burke since Thursday.

Lough Ree RNLI lifeboat station operations manager Damien Delaney said about 20 divers continued the search yesterday, while members of the Civil Defence combed the shore.

Despite poor visibility and high winds, the Garda water unit and Athlone Sub Aqua Club carried out dives to the west of Yew Point. “The dive was based on a sort of analysis of the information coming to us from different sources,” Mr Delaney said.

On Sunday night a cadaver dog handler gave the search teams the co-ordinates of a location where the dog had reacted. However, the Garda water unit found no trace of the man or the boat at the location yesterday. Information provided by Mr Trimble also assisted searchers.

“When he came to, the gardaí interviewed him and what he gave them was useful,” Mr Delaney said. “He told us what he could see from where he was in the water.” Mr Delaney added that there may be a light current in the search area and wind hampered the scanners. “We are just living in hope and doing the best with the information we have.”

Support for the search has been overwhelming with diving clubs, anglers, Inland Fisheries Ireland and local residents and businesses all lending a hand, said Mr Delaney. "All of us have one aim and that is to find him," he explained.

“People are just turning up at the station with armfuls of food,” Mr Delaney said. “We have been overwhelmed by the help we have got.”

The search for Mr Burke will resume this morning.