Golden Mariana crew in yacht rescue off Pierowall

Crew members on board the Golden Mariana have been commended for their swift response to a yacht in difficulty off Pierowall on Saturday morning.

Thanks to the quick actions of Skipper Christopher Davidson and Able Seaman Adam Tulloch, two yachtsmen and their Glasgow-registered vessel were freed and safely towed to Pierowall.

Christopher explained how the events unfolded: “It was around 10am on Saturday and we were leaving Papay heading back to Westray on a scheduled run with no passengers on board, when I heard a PAN-PAN urgency message come over the radio from a yacht hooked up and drifting about half a mile off Pierowall. Shetland Coastguard also called us as we were the closest in the area and asked for assistance, so we headed straight over. It took us less than ten minutes to get to the yacht. One of the Cooke Aquaculture boats, Ola R, was also there to help. We found the yacht hooked up to a creel buoy end.

“Thankfully the weather was favourable, but the yacht was fairly close to the shore and a bigger tide would have seen them scraping the bottom. We got alongside the yacht, explained what we were going to do and took them under tow head into the weather. Solan Dodman, from Papay, appeared alongside in his peedie speedboat and, with the help of Keith Kent from Cooke, was able to cut the buoyline clear, allowing us to get the yacht pulled clear and we took them to Pierowall and tied them up.”

Orkney Ferries Board Chair, Councillor Mellissa Thomson paid tribute to the crew.

She said: “The crew of the Golden Mariana, and others involved, are to be applauded for their swift action that led to the rescue of a yacht in difficulty. They demonstrated a calm and efficient response, born out of a standard of training and discipline which all our seagoing staff work to.”