The search for missing Portadown angler Daryl Burke will continue over the weekend after a ninth day without success.
A member of the Portadown Pikers club, the 30-year-old father-of-three was one of three pike fishermen whose boat capsized on Lough Ree, Co Westmeath last Thursday.
David Warnock from Richhill was pulled from the water but died later in hospital. The third man, John Trimble, spent five days in hospital before returning to the lough to help search for his friend.
The angling party had set out on a fishing and camping trip when the weather suddenly deteriorated.
Speaking to the Portadown Times this week, the missing man’s father Aubrey Burke said: “All we want is to find our son and it will give us closure.”
Mr Burke, who has remained at Lough Ree, added: “It’s been a terrible time all round, with the death of David Warnock and the disappearance of Daryl. But John’s courage and determination, and the fact that he actually survived the tragedy, have given us a lift.”
Sean McCarry of the NI Community Rescue Service has been involved in the search, along with Garda underwater search teams, since it started.
He said there has been no sign of the anglers’ 15-foot boat or Mr Burke since they were reported missing but the search will go on over the weekend.
“There has been nothing at all but we are still carrying on. I would love to tell you different but we have done a full day of scanning, and there have been divers out all day, but nothing.
“For the family it is very important the search continues. It has to go on until the person is found,” Mr McCarry said.
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