Irish Children Swept Out To Sea
news.bbc.co.uk
A major rescue operation was launched off the Irish coast on Thursday after 110 children were swept out to sea.
About 20 people were reported missing shortly afterwards, though Ireland's coastguard later said everyone had been rescued safely.
The children were taking part in a junior sailing regatta off the County Dublin coast, when a sudden squall capsized 91 boats in the Irish Sea.
Lifeboats, helicopters and the navy were all deployed in the rescue effort.
"Suddenly the wind blew up and visibility dropped and we had to get the kids out," said Paula O'Connor, an administrator with the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire, where the event took place.
"They are all accounted for," a coastguard official said.
"Emergency services are on the scene and were treating the children who were taken from the water and were extremely cold."
Dozens of boats were upturned by the freak gusts
Nobody suffered serious injuries, officials said.
The sudden gust of wind took young sailors by surprise as they took part in the Irish National Yacht Club event.
The competitors were all children under 16, a coastguard spokesman said.
They were understood to have been sailing dinghies for various yacht clubs when they were hit by the squall at about 1400 local time (1300 GMT).
They were all wearing buoyancy aids and were rescued within a mile of the coastline.
WORDS AND PHRASES
rescue: v. cấp cứu
lanch: v. phát động, tiến hành
sweep: (swept) v. quét
coastguard: n. người/ lực lượng bảo vệ bờ biển
junior: adj. nhỏ
regatta: n. cuộc đua thuyền
squall: n. cơn lốc
capsize: v. làm lật úp, lật ngược
blow up: pv. thổi mạnh, (gió) giật
visibility: n. tầm nhìn
yacht: n. thuyền (buồm) lớn
account for: v. quan tâm chăm sóc
official: n. quan chức
emergency services: np. các dịch vụ khẩn cấp (cứu nạn, cứu hộ, v.v...)
upturn: lật
gust: n. gió giật
freak: bất thường, kinh khủng
suffer: v. gánh chịu, bị
take someone by surprise: làm ai ngạc nhiên
competitor: n. tay đua
GMT: abbr. Greenwich Mean Time: múi giờ quốc tế (tính tại đài thiên văn Greenich, London, Anh Quốc)
dingy: thuyền nhỏ
buoyancy aids: phao các loại
coastline: bờ biển
