Marine / Vee Skerries victim firmly aground despite attempted rescue
A COASTGUARD tug will again attempt to refloat a stranded fishing vessel tomorrow morning (8 August) after the vessel refused to come off the Vee Skerries this afternoon.
A coastguard spokesperson said that the UK-flagged fishing boat Coelleira remained grounded after the emergency towing vessel Ievoli Black attempted to refloat her this afternoon.
The 30m long Oban registered fishing boat grounded on The Clubb around 1.30am on Sunday. The 15-strong crew of the Coelleira were winched off their ship but were found to be uninjured after a hospital check-up.
The dangerous Vee Skerries, have claimed several vessels in the past – most notably the Ben Doran, which was tragically lost with her crew in 1930.
It is not yet known how the Coelleira came to run aground in fine weather, but an MAIB investigation was confirmed on Monday.
Coelleira’s skipper and chief engineer had to be taken off the ship again on Sunday after the vessel developed a further list as they were investigating her condition.
A 500m temporary exclusion zone was set up around the area to keep other vessels away during the salvage attempt. Another stab at refloating her will be made at 3.15am according to the coastguard.
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