Lifeboat called to rescue 88-ft cargo ship drifting towards Skye Bridge

An RNLI lifeboat was called out to rescue a huge cargo vessel as it drifted towards the Skye Bridge.
The Kyle lifeboat heads to the emergency as the cargo ship drifts towards the Skye Bridge. PIC: Contributed.The Kyle lifeboat heads to the emergency as the cargo ship drifts towards the Skye Bridge. PIC: Contributed.
The Kyle lifeboat heads to the emergency as the cargo ship drifts towards the Skye Bridge. PIC: Contributed.

The Kyle lifeboat was called out to Eilean Bàn – the small island which the bridge uses as a ‘stepping stone’ – after multiple calls from members of the public, who could see the 88ft-long ship in trouble.

The volunteer crew got the first report at 3:24pm on Friday but were unable to get a response from the ship.

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The coastguard declared it a ‘Pan Pan’ situation – an emergency call out requiring immediate and swift attention

By the time the team arrived at the scene, the vessel was drifting sideways across the shipping channel and towards the bridge and hazardous rocks.

The Portree lifeboat was also sent out to assist due to the size of the ship.

The vessel managed to restore propulsion and was guided to the nearby pier at the Kyleakin Fish Plant.

Speaking of the incident, a volunteer on the Kyle lifeboat said: “When we arrived on scene the situation was serious, the vessel was no longer aground, but was floating broadside across the shipping channel and was drifting dangerously close to the bridge and nearby rocks.

“The vessel’s crew were not answering VHF radio calls and were not responding to the lifeboat crews attempts to make contact with them, but luckily the vessel managed to restore propulsion and made her own way the short distance to the MOWI pier in Kyleakin.”

Kyle lifeboat ensured the cargo vessel was able to dock safely, before Portree lifeboat – by then on its way at maximum speed - to stand down.

The volunteer coastguard remained with the ship’s crew until the Coastguard arrived.