Two sailors were rescued in separate incidents off the County Down coast during a demanding overnight search and rescue operation involving crews from Newcastle and Kilkeel RNLI late on Friday night and into the early hours of Saturday morning.

A new Shannon class all-weather lifeboat has officially entered service at Kilkeel RNLI, marking a significant milestone for the station and its volunteer crew after months of intensive training and preparation.

Emergency services mounted a major search and rescue operation on Carlingford Lough on Tuesday after a fishing vessel carrying two people sank in the waterway.

Kilkeel RNLI volunteers came to the aid of two people onboard a small pleasure craft after the vessel began taking on water while approaching Carlingford Marina.

Volunteer lifeboat crews from Newcastle and Kilkeel RNLI were called into action as part of a multi-agency response following the detection of an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) signal off the County Down coast.

Newcastle and Kilkeel RNLI were tasked as part of a multi-agency response following the activation of an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon).

The donor of the new Shannon class lifeboat at Kilkeel RNLI, made a visit to the station shortly after the arrival of the lifeboat into the County Down town.

Kilkeel RNLI rescued two young paddleboarders after they got blown out to sea by strong offshore winds and an ebbing tide at Warrenpoint.

Newcastle and Kilkeel RNLI responded to a false alarm with good intent last night after flares were sighted off the County Down coast.