One of the State's busiest mountain rescue teams is calling on the State to allow them to avail of the same insurance protection as the Garda, writes Anne Lucey.
The 30 team members are putting themselves and their families at risk because the insurance cover they are able to afford is "totally inadequate", according to spokesman Brendan Coffey.
Kerry Mountain Rescue Team (KMRT), a voluntary organisation set up in 1966 after a number of fatalities on the Macgillycuddy's Reeks, relies on voluntary contributions for the vast bulk of its funding.
Out of this it has to pay €13,000 for basic personal injury insurance cover. Additional insurance premiums are paid for the team's equipment and vehicles.
A new book, A Walking Guide to Ireland's Highest Mountains, says the number of walkers on the Reeks alone has reached 25,000 a year. Thousands more climb Mangerton and other Kerry mountains.
Since the millennium, the team, which is made up of experienced hill walkers, has had to deal with two fatalities per annum and several injuries, as well as disoriented and lost climbers.
The personal cover is all the team can afford, but this is inadequate, according to Mr Coffey.
"As the team acts at the behest of the gardaí when on mountain rescue duty, KMRT are asking that legislation be put in place whereby our team members could be covered under the Garda Compensation Act 1941," he said.