Teenage sailors rescued from the tall ship Asgard II,which sank off the coast of France yesterday, have praised the captain as a hero for his quick action in getting them off the stricken vessel.
The trainee seafarers who abandoned the ship as it went down said the sinking was a mystery.
They were met by their families and friends amid emotional scenes at Dublin airport tonight after their ordeal in the Bay of Biscay.
Holly Byrne (18), of Dundrum, South Dublin, said she was looking forward to being on dry land and having dinner with her family.
“The captain was absolutely brilliant - to get us all off the boat in less than five minutes is just wonderful, so you couldn’t have asked for better,” she said.
Ms Byrne said none of the 20 trainees, who were led by five crew, have speculated about the cause of the sinking in the aftermath.
“We were just glad that everyone was safe and we were just living on that,” she said.
“We were just glad she went down, that we didn’t leave her floating.
“She looked after us as well as she could. She stayed afloat until the last minute and she was just a wonderful boat.”
There were 22 Irish, two British and one Italian on board the world-renowned vessel, built in 1981, when it began talking on water in fair weather 20 miles from shore.
Ms Byrne said that there was no noise or any suggestion that the boat had struck anything immediately before the evacuation.
“You feel everything on a boat, so I honestly don’t think we hit anything.”
Katie Campbell (19), from Dublin described the Captain as an absolute hero and said she was delighted to be home.
“I’m so sad about the ship going down though. Hopefully they will get it back up,” she said.
Holly Clarke (16), from Tuam, Co Galway said she was awoken by the ship’s alarm and had no idea what happened.
“We were just woken up in the morning and to be honest I didn’t know what was happening.
“It was all handled very well - we weren’t scared at all.”
The trainee said it was so dark at the time of the sinking that she couldn’t see the ship going down as they took shelter in the lifeboats.
Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea met the shiip's captain Colm Newport at the airport and was briefed on the sinking.
All trainee sailors and the crew have been offered counselling.
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board has sent a two-man investigation team to the scene.
PA