Drones, dogs, sonar, divers and more used in the major operation
10:49, 25 Dec 2025Updated 10:52, 25 Dec 2025
Cork City Missing Persons Search and Recovery volunteers on the water
While most across Co. Cork are cosy at home with family this morning – heroic volunteers are out on the Lee once again today as part of a major multi-agency missing person search operation.
The operation is now in its eighth day after reports that someone had entered the water near Brian Boru Bridge in the early hours of Thursday 18th December. Cork City Missing Person Search and Rescue (CCMPSR) volunteers are just some of the people spending time away from family to continue the search today. Their first team set off at 9am this morning, and will rotate with two other groups throughout the day until dark.
Volunteer Christy O’Donovan will be joining the second crew at the Port of Cork at 1pm today, and he told Cork Beo they will “never stop” until the missing person is found. He added: “The commitment from all the organisations cannot be faulted, it really is a massive multi-agency search operation… the effort has been relentless by everyone.”
The drone team from Guileen Coast Guard
Gardaí, members of the Coast Guard, Cork City firefighters, the National Ambulance Service, CCMPSR, Mallow Search and Rescue (MSAR), Irish Search Dogs and Blackwater and Cork Sub Aqua clubs’ recovery teams have all played a major role in the search over the past week. When most were getting holidays from work and spending time with loved ones – these heroic crews were combing along the river, Lough Mahon and the wider Cork Harbour areas using boats, drones, sonar technology and divers.
Many of those involved in the operation are experienced volunteers who regularly give their time to help bring peace to the families of missing persons. Some of these groups also heavily rely on donations to keep their amazing services up and running. Currently, one athlete is taking on the challenge of swimming 169 kilometres in 56 days to raise funds for MSAR. It’s all in honour of her friend Cormac Ryan, whose body was retrieved by the Mallow-based crew in 2020. You can donate to support her here.
You can also donate to support the Cork City Missing Persons Search and Recovery team here.