Mother Tells Of Fear As Daughter Got Caught In Rip Current In Banna

.

Banna strand.

A MOTHER of a teenage girl who had to be rescued after getting into difficulty in the water on Banna Beach on Monday has told of the incident.

Adele Kelliher was on Radio Kerry’s ‘Talkabout’ programme with host Deirdre Walsh on Wednesday afternoon where said her daughter, Danica, had to be rescued by a Cork man, who was on the beach near Sandy Lane at the time.

Danica, who is a strong swimmer, got into trouble when she was caught in a rip current and was being pulled out to sea.

Continued below…

.

Her cousin raised the alarm and a man, Dave Donegan from Cork, went into the sea and managed to get to Danica who was floating on her back. Then the two of them stayed calm and managed to get away from the current to safety.

Adele said the fact that Danica stayed calm saved her.

“Dave said if Danica was panicking they definitely would have been pulled out [to sea]. He said it’s because she remained so calm, it enabled him to get over to her, hold her hand, and for the two of them to swim peacefully back to safety.”

Adele said the ordeal felt like an hour but it was only a couple of minutes.

“I could nearly hear my heart beating. The amazing thing was I had my labrador with me and 30 seconds before it happened, she perked up and started barking at the water. She obviously sensed something as well.”

Continued below…

.

Adele said it was important that people swimming in Banna know about the danger of rip currents.

Tom Ward, Senior Helmsman with Banna Inshore Rescue also spoke on ‘Talkabout’ and said rip currents can be very dangerous and can occur at any time on beaches. He gave advice on what to do if you get caught in one.

“Don’t try to fight the current. The best thing to do if you’re a strong swimmer is to swim parallel to the shoreline and eventually you will come out of the current. Don’t panic, that’s the worst thing to do,” he said.

He said most people going to Banna don’t know of the dangers of rip currents. He said the incident happened near Sandy Lane, an area far away from the lifeguards and advised people who want to go swimming, to do so closer to where the lifeguards are stationed. To find out more about rip currents see the video below…