Sheila,
If you go to the Library website at
http://www.clarelibrary.ie and fire up their search facility and enter "Irish Pine" you will find two references. The entry from Senan Scanlon's Kilrush Notes at
http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclar ... ttery3.htm says "1942 18th August (IT). Rescued by Irish Ship 18 Seamen Landed. Eighteen survivors of a British merchant ship sunk (Richmond Castle) in the Atlantic, and who spent ten days in an open boat before being picked up by the Irish Pine, were landed from that vessel at Cappa Pier,Kilrush,yesterday. Some hours before their arrival the V.A.D. Irish Red Cross, under Messrs.J.C. Clancy and J.A. Doyle, accompanied by the L.D.F, under District Staff Officer W. Hynes, and L.S.F., under Messrs. J.A. Hanson and M. Counihan, equipped with stretchers, blankets and four ambulances, were ready on the pier, and in the shortest time possible had all the survivors conveyed to Kilrush District Hospital, where the local Red Cross Society had them provided with the necessary clothing".
Whilst your question specifically referred to the Library resources, you may have already seen the report of the sinking at
http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/2001.html with a list of 22 people who were on board at
http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/c ... p2001.html and more at
http://www.bandcstaffregister.co.uk/page49.html
The Irish Pine itself, on a voyage from Boston to Dublin, was torpedoed and sunk by U-608, in North Atlantic 15 November 1942. Thirty-three died.
Sorry not to be able to help more. It's just possible that one of the Kilrush experts on this forum, or the Kilrush and District Historical Society (
http://www.kdhs.ie/), might have local access to archive material about the landing of the survivors. Also, it might be worth checking with the Irish Red Cross (contact details at
http://www.redcross.ie/home/) to see whether their archives contain a report of their activities in Kilrush (see Senan Scanlon's summary above).
Paddy