A photo of the Lochboisdale site when the barge was still afloat. It can be seen on the right of the picture. Photo: Mowi.

Mowi Scotland feed barge sinks during storm

Salmon farmer Mowi has reported that one its feed barges sank in the early hours of yesterday morning near Lochboisdale, Uist after taking on water during a storm that generated two-metre swells.

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In a press release, Mowi said no staff were aboard and no other significant damage was reported.

Mowi said: “The cylindrical feed barge, known as a SeaCap, contains 170 tonnes of fish feed within the unit, and approximately 1,000 litres of diesel fuel in a sealed tank. There are no reports of debris or fuel visible at sea or on the nearby shore line.

“As the weather breaks, scuba divers will be safely deployed to inspect the unit and plan a recovery of the barge and contents, which sit at 20 metres depth.

 “The cause of the water breach is not known at this time.”

The barge is likely to be one of Mowi’s older ones. The SeaCap barges were built at some time around the turn of the century.