French kayaker located on Inis Mór

A major air and sea search for a French kayaker was stood down this morning after the man was located on the Aran islands.

A major air and sea search for a French kayaker was stood down this morning after the man was located on the Aran islands.

The alert was raised by gardái when the man had not returned to his parked car after he left Rossaveal, Co Galway, last Friday afternoon.

Gardaí initially worked with Interpol to try and get a contact number for the man, while the Irish Coast Guard’s Costello Bay unit reported a sighting of a kayaker in Greatman’s Bay on Saturday afternoon.

The RNLI Aran island lifeboat established there were markings of a kayak pulled up on a beach at Inis Mór yesterday, but the craft was no longer in the area.

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The lifeboat and the Irish Coast Guard Sikorsky helicopter then searched all three Aran islands from first light this morning, along with the Irish Coast Guard North Aran unit.

The kayaker was located safe and well by the North Aran unit on a beach north of Kilronan, Inis Mór just after 8am.

Lorna Siggins

Lorna Siggins

Lorna Siggins is the former western and marine correspondent of The Irish Times