At 1730 on Friday Howth CG and Howth ILB were tasked by MRCC Dublin following a report that a walker had gone missing on Howth Head. A tourist group were walking from the Martello tower in Sutton to the Baily Lighthouse. They had stopped for lunch but afterwards one of the group set out alone before the rest. He had not met up with the group by 5 o’clock and was reported as missing to the Gardai. Howth CG assembled four search teams to search an area from the Martello tower to the Baily Lighthouse and up to the summit. Meanwhile Howth ILB conducted a shoreline search. After searching for an hour the Gardai reported that the missing person had been located in Greystones. Apparently he had walked back to Howth and taken the Dart to Greystones without telling anyone of his intentions. The team were stood down at 1845.
The incident highlights the importance of letting other people know what your intentions are if you intend deviating from an agreed plan or route. A simple phone call would have saved the rescue services from being called.
