Man suspected overboard from ferry believed to be from Limerick

A man believed to have gone overboard on a ferry travelling between Scotland and Northern Ireland is from Limerick, it is understood.

Emergency teams have resumed a search of Belfast Lough acting on “new information” after the alert from a fellow passenger on the Stena sailing on Saturday night.

The crew of the Stena Superfast 8 ferry were told by a passenger about a man going overboard at about 9.30pm.

Missing passenger

It is understood a relative of the missing passenger had contacted Dublin Port on Saturday, concerned about the 39-year-old man, who they believed at the time to be travelling from Holyhead in Wales to Dublin.

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However, it later emerged the man was on the Cairnryan to Belfast sailing.

After a man was seen going overboard, the UK Coastguard was notified and the Stena ship’s fast response craft was launched.

Two RNLI lifeboats from Bangor; pilot launches from the harbour; the Coastguard helicopter based at Prestwick, Scotland; and Bangor Coastguard Rescue Team were scrambled to the scene.

Search effort

An extensive search went on into the early hours of the morning.

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency said on Sunday it was resuming its search of Belfast Lough “following new information, relating to a report of a man overboard from a ferry on route to Belfast harbour.”

“Bangor, Larne and Port Muck coastguard rescue teams along with Donaghadee and Larne RNLI lifeboats and Lowland Search and Rescue teams are continuing the search which resumed just before 8am,” a spokeswoman said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland said it was also involved in the search operation.