Roscommon Underwater Search and Recovery Club celebrates 40th anniversary

Since its humble beginnings in 1985, the Roscommon Underwater Search and Recovery Club has provided an invaluable and voluntary search and recovery service to the community, Civil Defence and Irish Coast Guard.

2025 has been a big year for the club. As members looked forward to celebrating the club’s 40th anniversary, the RUSRC was nominated to represent Roscommon in this year’s prestigious Pride of Place awards.

The original 14 local divers who formed what was known as the ‘Dolphin Sub Aqua Club’ 40 years ago, could not have envisaged then how strongly the club would evolve.

With more than 30 active voluntary members today, the club serves a crucial service in the Roscommon and wider midlands community through recovery dives, providing support for triathlons and runs, alongside providing top class diving training.

The RUSRC also has a clubhouse on the Racecourse Road, housing state-of-the-art equipment such as fully kitted vehicles, boats and even a Nitrox compressor.

Chairperson of the RUSRC Phillip Cribbin has been a member of the club for more than six years, first dipping his toes into the waters of diving through a “Try a Dive” programme in 2019.

From those first dives, Phillip’s appetite to be involved with the club only grew. “I knew it was something I wanted to continue, and my journey with the club started with absolutely zero regrets,” he said.

Like the over 150 members that have passed through the club in its time, Phillip has learned invaluable skills. “With the help of some highly experienced personnel within our club I have received the relevant qualifications to allow me to dive all over Ireland and become a fully trained Club/Search and Recovery diver.” Philip described how the club is split into a sub-aqua club and a search and recovery club, to give new members the opportunity to learn the basics of diving in a pressure free environment.

Following 25 dives at varying depths, and practical and theory tests, divers progress onto the search and recovery elements of diving, which consists of another 25 dives to obtain qualification.

The training provided by RUSRC ensures new members are more than able to tackle the open water, opening up a new world of experiences.

“The club predominantly dive along the West coast of Ireland which is widely known as being up there with some of the best diving locations in the world. You don’t have to be a great swimmer to enjoy this sport. Novice swimmers and snorkelers evolve to become divers for whom there is no question of why they take part in scuba diving - only when my next dive will be,” explained Phillip.

A close bond quickly develops between divers, who rely on each other. A buddy-system is used for training, where members need to learn how to work together underwater, including knowing sign language for communication and being able to help another change diving gear.

This develops a sense of camaraderie that’s “second to none” according to Phillip.

“Often diving in harsh conditions, each member places a lot of trust upon their fellow diver/buddy. We train and upskill throughout the year to allow us to be professional and ready in times of search and recovery missions.”

He added: “We also train alongside other Midlands Search and Recovery clubs allowing us to be one cohesive unit when called upon. This is extremely important for family members who may be looking on from the shoreline in times of distress and anguish.” While the social and learning aspects build the foundation of the RUSRC, the club also provides a very important service to the region, consisting of approximately 120 lakes, through their search and rescue missions.

Fifty-two weeks of the year, the club trains, ensuring members are adequately trained as callouts can come at any time. “From a club perspective, it’s key that we are available as often as we can, but we’re all professionals that work Monday to Friday, so it all depends,” the RUSRC chairperson said.

Phillip’s eyes were opened in January of 2023 when the club was involved in a large scale search and recovery. “That opened up the club as something bigger to me, I never realised I was a part of it,” he said.

A touching testimonial received by the club from a separate recovery described each member as “heroes”.

The testimonial further read: “Thanks to you I get to say goodbye to my dad properly. I get to stop wondering where he is and I can know that he will be warm, clothed and comfortable and that he is not out in the water all alone. It may not make sense, but I felt a huge sense of relief when I knew that his body was out. I had known in my heart since Sunday that he was in the water and I could not rest until he was out”.

The important service provided by the club is only possible due to the members paying their own expenses, grant aid and fundraisers. Housing and maintaining all of the diving equipment and vehicles is expensive, with the RUSRC estimating that full search and recovery training costs €4,200.

Phillip described the challenges in keeping the club adequately funded. “Without our yearly fundraising initiatives the club would not be in existence. We face a constant battle to keep all of our club and dive equipment fully serviced all at our own expense.

“The club has estimated a cost of €4,200 to have one diver fully trained and dive ready to assist in any underwater search and recovery missions plus the cost of the diving equipment of the individual. Therefore, fundraising and keeping ourselves above water in financial terms is fundamental to the club’s existence.” Phillip believes without the club, a search and recovery service in the region would not be possible. “That’s why we were trying to push for the Pride of Place, if we weren’t here, the government would have to provide that service as a whole.” “So I think from the Pride of Place perspective, it’s just trying to understand what groups like us, small community groups, can do that the government can’t.” As it grows, the RUSRC encourages new membership yearly, striving to include members from every part of the community, and also to generate a diving interest amongst younger people.

This year’s “Try a Dive” will be held in late October or November, in the Corrib Leisure Centre with all equipment provided and is free of charge.

The RUSRC has setup an iDonate page online to aid training, new equipment and maintenance. “Any donation, no matter how small, is very much appreciated by each past and present member of the club,” said Phillip.

The RUSRC invites all past and present members to call to the clubhouse on September 26th at 7.30 p.m. to showcase the progress of the club over its 40 years in existence. This will be followed by refreshments in town. Please contact Philip on 086-3828913 if you would like to attend.