DUBLIN, Ireland: A marine safety watchdog has urged the Minister for Transport to consider deploying gardai, naval officers, and harbor masters to enforce maritime safety regulations amid rising concerns over the lack of compliance with personal flotation device (PFD) rules.

The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) stated that the persistent disregard for regulations requiring the wearing of Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs), highlighted in multiple investigations into drownings, raises questions about the need for stricter enforcement measures. The board suggested that criminal prosecutions may be necessary to address what it described as a widespread "flouting" of safety guidelines.

Currently, those found in breach of the regulation face fines of up to 5,000 euros for summary convictions.

The MCIB's comments were included in a report that examined the death of a man in his 30s who drowned after falling overboard from a leisure craft, Lady Pexia, in Galway Bay last August. The man had been on a mackerel fishing trip and was returning to Nimmos Pier in the Claddagh when the incident occurred.

According to the report, the skipper provided his friend with a PFD before departure and reminded him to wear it throughout the journey. While the skipper said the man wore the lifejacket for most of the trip, the MCIB noted that the equipment was defective. At the time the skipper realized his friend was missing, the PFD was found lying on the engine hatch.

The report also noted that the noise level inside the boat's cabin and the restricted view from the cabin's aft bulkhead likely prevented the skipper from hearing or seeing his friend falling overboard.

The MCIB concluded that the victim, a strong swimmer, might have survived had he been wearing a functioning PFD. "If he was longer in the water it could have kept him alive and afloat for the hour or so before he was recovered by rescue helicopter R118," the report stated, noting that hypothermia would still have posed a risk.

The investigation revealed that only one of the five PFDs on the Lady Pexia was in working condition. Additionally, toxicology reports found the deceased had alcohol levels six times the legal drink-driving limit, a factor the MCIB identified as a likely contributor to the incident.

The MCIB issued several safety recommendations, including a call for the skipper to ensure that all passengers wear PFDs at all times and to be aware of laws prohibiting the consumption of alcohol or drugs on vessels in a manner that compromises safety.