The Irish coastguard was alerted after an Irish passenger ferry was left stranded on rocks for almost 3 hours yesterday after running aground just metres from Doolin pier in Co Clare.
The incident occurred at about 11.30am as the Rose of Aran , operated by Aran Doolin Ferries, was arriving in Doolin to collect passengers travelling to the Aran Islands.
The ferry was between Crab Island and Doolin pier when it ran aground about 25m from the shore.
There was a crew of four on board and, according to the company, there were no passengers on board at the time.
The Irish Coast Guard was notified of the incident at midday, and its marine rescue co-ordination centre in Dublin requested that members of the local Coast Guard unit board the vessel to assess if there was a pollution risk.
