A thrilling rescue of three men marooned on the Blackrock Lighthouse in Sligo Bay since last Monday week was carried out yesterday afternoon by a Royal Navy helicopter from the Royal Air Force station at Eglinton, Co. Derry.

Two of the men were technicians employed by the Commissioners of Irish Lights. They were Dick Delaney (38) father of five children of 173 Rafter's Road, Crumlin, Dublin, and James Lambert (55) unmarried, 1 Donnycarney Road, Dublin. The third man, Thomas McMorrow (50) father of five children of Greenland Villas, Rosses Point, Co. Sligo was employed by the Commissioners as a labourer to assist the other two who went to the lighthouse to carry out maintenance and repair work.

When they left Rosses Point 11 days ago they took with them bedding, equipment and food supplies sufficient to last for a week.

Food Rationed
A relief boat with further food supplies was due to arrive at Blackrock, which is an unstaffed automatic lighthouse, on Saturday last but, due to the weather, was unable to make the crossing from the mainland at Rosses Point.
As their food was running low, the men raised a distress flag on the lighthouse and the alarm was raised yesterday morning.

Shortly after mid-day Mr Kevin P. Murray, company director, Sligo, accompanied by Mr Padraig Ferguson, company manager, a former captain in the Army Air Corps, flew over the lighthouse in Mr Murray's Miles Messenger aircraft. On the balcony of the lighthouse they saw two men waving their arms and as they flew in closer they noticed they were pointing their hands towards their mouths. Arrangements were made for Mr Murray to drop food parcels to the stranded men in the afternoon but before this was done a message was received at Rosses Point that a helicopter was on its way from Eglinton.

Shortly before three o'clock the helicopter, which was manned by a crew of two, arrived over the lighthouse. Within minutes it had landed on the rocks surrounding the base of the lighthouse.

Making separate runs, the three men were taken off by the helicopter and landed on Oyster Island on the opposite site of Sligo Bay channel from Rosses Point.
When the men were brought to Rosses Point, James Lambert said they watched for the arrival of the relief boat on Saturday, and when it had not arrived by nightfall, they decided to ration their remaining food. Their stock of fresh water, food and paraffin oil for their cooking stove was running low, and when they were taken off yesterday they had completely run out of meat and tea. In order to augment their food supplies, he said, his companions gathered periwinkles among the rocks, and they cooked them and ate them.

On Wednesday, their main meal consisted of one tin of peas and an onion which they cooked and divided between them. Yesterday at lunch time they had a meal which consisted of pieces of turnip, cabbage and carrots.

Dick Delaney said they whiled away the time reading and re-reading the few magazines and newspapers they had brought with them when landed on the lighthouse.

On Sunday afternoon last an effort was made by two Rosses Point residents, Messrs Joseph Haran and Austin Gillen, to reach the lighthouse in a motor boat, but owing to the strong seas which were running they were forced to return to Rosses Point.

It is understood that this is the first time that men were successfully rescued by helicopter from an Irish lighthouse.

The helicopter was piloted by Lieut.-Commander C.C. Thornton and Leading Telegraphist B. Brindley was also on board.
Report from The Irish Times, Friday 26 October 1956 reproduced by kind permission.