On Monday, September 20th, 1976, a light aeroplane left Kilbrittin Airstrip, Co Cork bound for Abbeyshrule, Co Longford.
The pilot was Tom Gannon, a Leitrim solicitor, and he was accompanied by Longford farmer Jimmy Byrne and garage proprietor Dick O' Reilly. All three were experienced airmen and founder members of Abbeyshrule Aero Club.
When the plane failed to arrive at its destination and could not be contacted, an Air Corps helicopter began a search along the planned route. It identified the wreckage of an aircraft lying at in the Galtee Mountains of Co Tipperary at a height of about 88 metres.
In those days there were mountain rescue in Kerry and Wicklow but no such service in Tipperary. It fell to hill-walkers with local knowledge of the area to lead the search and rescue operation as distraught relatives began gathering below the mountain.
At first light on Tuesday morning they guided gardaí and medical personnel to the accident site and then assisted with the poignant recovery operation, since there were no survivors.
The Galtee Mountains air tragedy highlighted the need for a local mountain rescue service; and as a result of an initiative by three local hill-walking clubs, the South Eastern Mountain Rescue Association (SEMRA) was founded in 1977. It now provides a 365-day search and rescue service for the mountains of Ireland's south-east region. Its sprawling 2,000-square-mile operational area covers five mountain ranges and is the most extensive for any mountain rescue team on these islands.
Being a SEMRA member isn't just about knowing the local mountains and being able to find lost hill-walkers. These days, mountain rescuers are highly trained volunteer professionals. Initially they undergo an intensive one-year training in search management and technical rescue methods. Specialist courses in advanced first aid are also undertaken while rescue team members are expected to maintain a high level of fitness and to provide much of their own protective clothing and climbing equipment.
When I talked to SEMRA spokesman Jimmy Barry, he explained that the demand for rescue services had recently grown dramatically. "The team responded to 19 call-outs last year, which involved an investment by members of 3,147 volunteer hours. This year the team has already logged 23 callouts," says Jimmy.
In most European countries mountain rescuers are paid by the hour and the service is treated as a commercial operation. As a rule, you can expect to pay for rescue in the Alps and it essential to insure yourself against such an eventuality.
No such requirement exists in Ireland. Here an honourable tradition dictates that other mountaineers respond immediately and without question to anyone who gets into difficulty on the hills. That is the ethos which drives SEMRA's proudly unpaid volunteers, who are rewarded only by the gratitude of those they have assisted.
When they aren't training or answering a call-out, rescue team members are likely enough to be rattling collection boxes outside supermarkets and cinemas. "To equip a volunteer to a reasonable standard costs at least €2,000 and government funding covers only about a quarter of this," Jimmy Barry points out. "The rest has to be raised by flag days, donations from hill-walking clubs and contributions from private individuals." Yet at a time when notions of community service and voluntarism are under pressure from the growth of self-serving individualism, SEMRA is having no shortage of applications for membership. What is it that motivates people to give a 24-hour commitment to an unglamorous and unrewarded task that relentlessly devours leisure time and can be both harrowing and dangerous? According to Jimmy Barry, "mountain rescue arises from within the community and the common denominator that links all rescue volunteers is a love of the mountains and a deep-seated commitment to helping those in trouble."
When I caught up with Killenaule-based rescue volunteer Matt Joy as he collected funds for SEMRA outside a Clonmel shopping centre, he echoed these sentiments. "When your pager goes off, even if its 4am, you don't question why - you just get up immediately. It's what you have signed up for and you automatically want to help whoever is in trouble out there on the hills."
Whatever the source of their extraordinary motivation SEMRA volunteers demonstrate a 24/7 commitment to all aspects of mountain safety. Last year they were involved with erecting a monument in the shape of an aircraft tail section to the memory of the airmen who died in the Galtee air crash.
Tomorrow, in Seville Lodge, Kilkenny they are launching their new website - www.semra.ie - and also celebrating the 30th anniversary of the team's foundation. To mark the occasion there will be a photographic display and slide show not only depicting past team call-outs, but also emphasising SEMRA's continuing commitment to ensuring safer mountain recreation for all of us.