Irish Sail Trianing Vessel Asgard 2 Sinks

Reports have confirmed the sad news that the Irish Tall Ship and Sail training vessel the "Asgard II", has sunk in the Bay of Biscay (France).

Appararently distress signals were sent from the vessel late last night as it began to take on water.

Eventually all 20 trainees and 5 crew on board were safely evacuted to life rafts and then rescued by the French Coast Guard. The crew and trainees are now on the the island of Bell Ile in the Bay of Biscay and official from the Irish Paris embassy are said to be on their way.

The Asgard II was a Tall Ship which provided Sail Training to Thousands of Irish young people, since it first set sail in 1981. For all who have had a connection with this ship throughout the years this is very sad news.

Speaking on RTE Radio former Asgard II Captain Frank Trainer "We used to take young people out and let them see the worst that the weather and ship could throw at them. It was really character building and taught alot of people about trust, teamwork and living at sea." "I would think that the cause of the water might have been an open Sea cog or perhaps a plank sperating from the hull, but it's impossbile to say without the facts".

It is thought that the ship may be submerged in up to 70 - 80 meters of water, making a possible salvage operation difficult.

Will there be an Asgard 3? We certainly hope so, as this Ship was a genuine asset to Sail Training and will be sorely missed.

For more background on the Asgard II please visit this earlier article we wrote on the ship: