Tributes have been paid to two missing fishermen who are feared drowned in the Irish Sea.
Ronan Browne (25) and his friend David Gilsenan (41) have not been seen since leaving Skerries harbour in north Dublin in their 17ft open-top fishing boat at about 11am yesterday.
Their boat was located overturned five miles south-east of Clogherhead today and is being towed to the port for a technical examination.
Both men are married and Mr Gilsenan is a father-of-two. Both are qualified marine engineers who lived locally in the fishing town.
Their wives, flanked by family, close friends and members of the close-knit fishing community, are at the pier awaiting news from the search operation.
Friends of Mr Browne said he had been reared on boats, fishing locally before he became a marine engineer who worked on factory-size fishing vessels.
“He was the kind of person who would do anything for you, he was very generous with his time,” said one.
Aisling McGuinness described Mr Gilsenan, a friend for several years, as a hard-working family man. “He was a brilliant dad and a good family man who worked hard,” she said. “It’s so sombre here, everyone is stunned and shocked.
“We still can’t believe it.” The alarm was raised at 6.30pm yesterday when a fisherman realised the pair had failed to return to the harbour.
An item of clothing from one of the men and lobster pots from the boat were later found off Colt Island - 12 miles south from where their boat was recovered.
“They just went to sea and didn’t come back,” one woman said.
“Please God they’ll find them one way or another for their families’ sake.” Almost 30 local fishing and pleasure craft joined the search at first light, which involved RNLI volunteer lifeboat crews from Howth, Skerries and Clogherhead, the Coast Guard helicopter and Garda divers.
The search is concentrated on an area of six nautical square miles. More than 100 people also met at dawn to take part in a coastline search which spanned from as far as Howth to Bettystown in Co Meath.
RNLI spokeswoman Mary Courtney said the community spirit was second to none, with boat owners joining the search and residents offering accommodation and food.
But she admitted it was a difficult task for the lifeboat crew, many who of whom personally knew the missing men.
“Some of them would be fishermen themselves and they will continue to search and will keep going on,” she said.
“They worked through the night, stayed here all night, went straight back out this morning and will keep going.”