Norwegian sailor rushed to hospital after falling into Montrose harbour
A Norwegian sailor was rushed to hospital after being pulled out of Montrose harbour by his crewmates.
- By Graeme Strachan
- Published in the Courier : 30.12.11
- Published online : 30.12.11 @ 11.13am
They lowered a ladder and hauled him to safety after he plunged between his ship and the harbour wall early on Thursday.
He was semi-conscious following the ordeal and was rushed to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee where police described his condition as ''critical''.
The drama unfolded in the early hours of the morning at the busy Angus port. The plunge sparked a full-scale response from the coastguard, lifeboat, police, fire and ambulance.
Forth Coastguard received an emergency call around 1.25am that a Norwegian crew member from the support vessel Stril Explorer had fallen between his ship and the quayside.
The 69-metre vessel is berthed opposite Montrose lifeboat shed. Despite its proximity the lifeboat crew were not needed as the 39-year-old man was rescued by his own shipmates.
A spokesman for Montrose RNLI said: ''The man was believed to have been in the water for 15 minutes and fellow crew members had managed to lower a ladder between the side of the ship and the quayside to pull the man to safety.
''He was attended by paramedics and taken to Ninewells Hospital in a semi-conscious condition. The water was obviously bitterly cold.''
Tayside Fire and Rescue also sent five appliances from Montrose, Brechin and the Kingsway East station in Dundee but were not needed.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: ''A male had fallen between the ship the Stril Explorer and the harbour wall. The patient was out of the water and was breathing.''
A spokesman for Tayside Police said: ''The incident was about 1.30am. There was a male between the harbour wall and a boat called the Stril Explorer. He was taken to Ninewells and is in a critical condition.
''The incident came from a report of someone thinking it was a body in the water.''
Stril Explorer is a multi-purpose support vessel (MPSV) for subsea operations. It is equipped and fitted for diving, surveying, field maintenance, acting as a ROV (remotely operated vehicle) and IMR (inspection, repair and maintenance) services.
The Montrose lifeboat was called shortly after to an incident of a male in distress on the Montrose Bridge.
Police managed to talk him to safety and the crew was eventually stood down.
12.31pm - 30.12.2011 Catherine Luke - Zurich, Switzerland Report This
Where's Bamse when you need him?
05.18pm - 30.12.2011 Bob Sangster - Montrose, Uk Report This
Or any mention of Montrose Coastguard? Where was the fire...??
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