One fisherman found dead, two missing after boat overdue off Isle of Lewis

A body has been recovered and two men are still missing after a fishing boat with three crew failed to return to Port of Ness on the Isle of Lewis on Tuesday night, Oct. 13. As of Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 14, the boat has not been found.

Police Scotland said the man's body was recovered at about 2.45am on Wednesday. Formal identification has not yet taken place. The next of kin of all three men are aware and are being supported by officers.

How the search unfolded

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said the alarm was raised at about 9.20pm Tuesday, when the boat was overdue. Police Scotland's own statement says the report reached the force around 11.35pm.

Stornoway RNLI's all-weather lifeboat was tasked at 9.42pm at HM Coastguard's request and searched for more than eight hours. Lochinver RNLI's all-weather lifeboat launched around midnight and returned to port just after 7am Wednesday.

The air effort has been heavy. A coastguard helicopter from Stornoway and a plane from Humberside searched in grid patterns north of the Butt of Lewis before returning to base shortly after 3am. A second helicopter began searching at about 4.30am. The Humberside plane, G-HMGH, was back over the area shortly after 6am.

A second coastguard plane, from Prestwick, searched a wider area between 10am and midday. G-HMGH flew a third search at about 12.30pm.

In total, the response includes a coastguard plane, two coastguard helicopters, six coastguard rescue teams, two RNLI lifeboats and a local vessel. Local council convener Kenneth Macleod said the helicopters came from Stornoway and Shetland.

Conditions and police warning

A Met Office yellow warning covered parts of the Highlands and Western Isles from 10am to 7pm Wednesday, with gusts of 50 to 70mph expected in places.

No official has said what happened to the boat. No cause has been given for the vessel going missing, and the name of the boat has not been released.

Chief Inspector Ross McCartney, local area commander for the Western Isles, asked the public to stay out of the search.

"We know that the local community will be keen to help in any way they can," McCartney said. "However, conditions are very challenging, and I would urge people not to put themselves at any risk. Please do not attempt to carry out searches in areas which put you at risk of harm."

He added that "considerable efforts are ongoing between ourselves and partners to locate the vessel and the two remaining unaccounted for crew members." The families of all three men are receiving specialist support, he said.

A small community absorbs the news

Port of Ness sits at the northern tip of Lewis, and the search area around the Butt of Lewis is close to it. In a Wednesday interview on BBC Radio Scotland's Lunchtime Live, Macleod, convener of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, called it "a very dark day for the community of Ness and the community of Lewis in general."

"It's even darker for the families affected," Macleod said, "and we can't even begin to comprehend what the families of the three fishermen are going through at the moment."

McCartney said police were aware of the effect on communities across the Outer Hebrides "and beyond."

What comes next

The searches for the two men and the vessel are continuing. The dead man's formal identification is still pending. Police Scotland has not said when it expects to release names.