Diver dies in Stornoway Harbour

A 38-year-old commercial diver has died in unexplained circumstances after being recovered injured from the water in Stornoway Harbour on the Isle of Lewis, the biggest island in the Outer Hebrides.

Stornoway Coastguard received an emergency call from within the harbour area at 6.21pm on 31 August, according to the Press & Journal, and sent out a rescue team. Meanwhile Stornoway RNLI picked up the diver.

Police Scotland reported being called at around 7.15pm. The Coastguard rescue team rushed the man to Western Isles Hospital about a mile away, but he was pronounced dead on the way. 

The police are investigating the death, which they are treating as unexplained, and will submit a report to the Procurator Fiscal. 

According to the BBC, the incident occurred at the Stornoway Deep Water Terminal project site and involved a diver employed by a sub-contractor of civil engineering company McLaughlin & Harvey

A new facility is being constructed at the harbour site, designed to establish Stornoway as the only port in north-western Scotland capable of accommodating large vessels, including cruise ships. Because the incident appears to have involved a commercial diver the Health & Safety Executive has been informed.