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Updated at 9:10 a.m., Thursday, July 5, 2007

Yachting: 110 children rescued from sea at regatta

Associated Press

 

A young boy is treated by paramedics after more than 100 children were rescued from the Irish Sea after being swept into the water during a junior regatta off the coast of Dun Laoghaire in Ireland today. The children were taking part in the National Yacht Club junior regatta when a sudden squall capsized 91 boats.

Niall Carson|Associated Press

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DUBLIN, Ireland — The Irish coast guard rescued some 110 children from the sea today after a sudden squall hit their sailboats, Irish officials said.

The children, ages 10 to 15, were taking part in the National Yacht Club junior regatta when the squall capsized 91 boats in the Irish Sea south of Dublin. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

"All of the children, thankfully, have been accounted for," said Olive Stephens, spokeswoman for Ireland's Department of Transport.

She could not immediately confirm how many of the children, all wearing life vests, were dumped into the chilly sea, or how far off shore they were.

"Those who had to be plucked from the water were obviously suffering from the cold and received treatment on shore," she said.

All the children were being taken to one of two south Dublin hospitals for examinations, but nobody suffered serious injuries, she said.

Dun Laoghaire harbor police summoned about 20 ambulances and a coast guard helicopter to the scene. A navy vessel, the Aoife, also arrived during the emergency and deployed its own inflatable craft.

Dun Laoghaire, pronounced "Dunleary," is a major ferry port and yachting center.