The last vessel operating as a lighthouse on the Irish coast is decommissioned.
The Irish Lights vessel The Gannet was towed away by the Granuaile. The lightship had been stationed a few miles off Portavogie in County Down and is now been put up for sale by the Commissioners of Irish Lights.
For nearly 200 years, their lights guided mariners around the coast.
The Gannet had been staffed until 1992 when it was automated. Irish Lights attendant, Gabriel Rogers, recalls tough times on board the lightships. Attendants spent six week stints on board but it could be longer if the weather did not permit them to leave.
Over the past three centuries, there have been many shipwrecks in the area around the South Rock. Ian Wilson, author of 'Shipwrecks of the Ulster Coast' says that this area made many mariners very nervous.
The South Rock is now marked by a super buoy which contains a light and a radar beacon and is powered by the sun and waves.
John Kidney, Commissioners of Irish Lights, says there are many suggestions for the future use of The Gannet. One proposal is that it becomes a boat club in Strangford, and another is that it becomes a restaurant in Paris.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 25 February 2009. The reporter is Michael Fisher.
