Two women who rescued four men drowning off the Cork coast, a teenager who gave CPR to save his father’s life, and a man who rescued an elderly neighbour from a house fire were among 25 people to receive awards for bravery.
Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghaíl issued the National Bravery Awards to those who “risked their own lives to aid others in peril”.
Among those who received awards were Beth Darrer and Niamh McMahon, who came to the aid of four young males who got into difficulty while playing in the water at Inchydoney Beach, West Cork, on May 27, 2020.
For their actions, they were awarded a bronze medal and a certificate of bravery.
Another Cork native, Shane Moloney, was awarded a certificate of bravery after he performed CPR on his father following an electrical accident in Doneraile on January 6, 2018.
Chris Steel, from Cork, was awarded a letter of commendation after he rescued an elderly man from a house fire in Ballysaggart, Co Donegal, in April 2020.
Sarah Courtney, Ronan Flanagan, Adrian O’Hara, who are all from Waterford, and Aaron Hyland, from Galway, were awarded certificates of bravery after they rescued seven crew members from the LÉ George Bernard Shaw after it lost power and was in grave danger of sinking 70 nautical miles west of Bantry Bay. The act of bravery, which occurred on March 27, 2021, also saw Ms Courtney awarded a silver medal.
Susan Hackett, from Tipperary, was awarded a silver medal and a certificate of bravery 25 years after the then 16-year-old rescued two young swimmers who had come into trouble on the River Suir near Newcastle.
Walter Butler, Declan Butler, Eoghan Butler, Alexander Hugh Thomson, from Arlington, Virginia, US, and Caiden Sweeney, from Donegal,were awarded certificates of bravery.
Garda Michael Joseph Lee from Cavan, Scott McQuaid from Kildare, Zoe Lally from Sligo, and Demitrios Paraskevakis were all awarded silver medals and certificates of bravery.
Garda Caroline O’Brien from Kilkenny, Garda Jeremiah Sheehy from Offaly, Garda Keenan McGavisk from Dublin, and Garda Róisín O’Donnell from Donegal, Gerard Tyrrell from Dublin, James Melia from Offaly, and Jane Friel from Donegal were all awarded bronze medals and certificates of bravery.
