Fears of ecological disaster for St Kilda

URGENT action was being taken last night to protect the fragile environment of St Kilda – Britain's first World Heritage Site – amid fears that rats could leap ashore from a stricken fishing boat

.

Following a dramatic day in which 14 Spanish fishermen were airlifted to safety when their vessel foundered on rocks in a force-nine gale and mountainous seas, it emerged that the islands' seabird colony could be under threat from rodents.

Experts believe it is possible that rats on board the vessel, which is currently trapped against rocks on the main island's coast, will move on to land, where at present the only mammals are mice and sheep.

The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) – which owns the group of islands, 44 miles west of Benbecula – said St Kilda's seabird colony could be decimated if rats get ashore.

Rat traps were laid yesterday by military staff on Hirta, the main island, in an attempt to stop the rats before they ate birds' eggs.

The eggs are laid in ground nests because of the absence of trees. An NTS team plan to fly out as soon as it can.

Susan Bain, the trust's property manager, said rats could pose "a huge problem": "(The island's] isolation means that there are no land-based predators on the bird colonies, and we've got strict guidelines to make sure people don't accidentally bring non-native species, such as cats or rats, on to the islands.

"There are only two mammal species – sheep and the St Kilda mouse, a unique sub-species – that inhabit the islands. So any possibility of rats being introduced would be a concern."

Abbie Patterson, the trust's national species recovery officer, said: "This is potentially very worrying if any rats aboard the vessel get ashore as they could put the seabird colony at risk by eating eggs and chicks."

St Kilda, a remote cluster of rocky islands on the edge of the Continental Shelf, was designated a World Heritage Site for its massive cliffs and profusion of seabirds, such as the world's biggest colony of 60,000 pairs of northern gannets.

The islands are the most important seabird station in the north-east Atlantic and also have large colonies of puffin, fulmar and Leach's storm petrel.

There are also concerns about the impact of the trawler's estimated 8,000 litres of diesel and oil if it leaked.

Dr Dan Barlow, WWF Scotland's acting director, warned: "It is a very sensitive marine environment and were a spill to occur, there is a risk that it could have a big impact on the biological marine environment and wildlife in that area."

Concerns about the potential environmental disaster came as Britain was battered by 75mph winds, with blizzards causing chaos on roads.

Details of the dramatic rescue of the crew by the coastguard also emerged yesterday. The 169-tonne trawler was virtually lifted ashore by the huge waves in a force-nine gale.

At one stage, the pilot of the helicopter was forced to hover dangerously close to the cliffs of the island, the rotor blades just 20ft from the rock face.

The drama began shortly after 5am yesterday, when the 82ft trawler, the Spinning Dale, was driven on to rocks on Village Bay, on the eastern edge of Hirta.

A digital distress signal was picked up at the coastguard station at Stornoway.

Captain Liz Forsyth, a former RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot, said: "When we got there it was still pitch black and there was severe turbulence and high seas.

"The vessel was in a 'V' of rocks and as each wave swept right over, it was being washed in and washed out. The winchman, once he was on the deck, said at one point he thought it was actually going right over."

She stressed: "To go in there without being able to see the rising ground in that turbulence would have just been madness. We waited for about half an hour or so until it was light enough to go in."

Capt Forsyth and her crew managed to lower a winchman, Phil Warrington, on to the deck of the trawler. Mr Warrington was repeatedly struck by heavy waves crashing over the vessel, its stern already submerged, as he helped to winch the stranded seamen to safety.

Capt Forsyth was forced to maintain a stable hovering position in the winds buffeting the aircraft close to the cliff.

She said: "The boat was hard in towards the base of the cliff, but the cliff face was sloping away. Where we were hovering, the tips of the rotors were about 20ft away from the cliff face. It was quite a tricky operation.

"We had to put the winchman on the bow because the back of the boat was under the water. The main problem was for the winchman, who was having the waves crashing over this head. He had bruises up his arm just from hanging on to the deck as each wave went through."

Capt Forsyth, 34, continued: "They were very relieved when they got on board. It was one of the most hazardous operations I have ever been involved in."

At 9:06am all 14 fishermen were safely on board the helicopter. One man had an injury to his hand and four were suffering from suspected hypothermia.

The injured trawlermen were transferred to the Western Isles Hospital for treatment, while the other crewmen were cared for by officials from the local fishermen's mission.

One of the rescued men, Christino Andre, said: "It was very frightening. I was asleep in my bunk when the captain came in shouting 'Come on, come on, come on'. The captain radioed a mayday."

PREVIOUS SCOTS RAT RUNS

THIS is not the first time that professional rat-catchers have been brought in to protect the indigenous wildlife of a Scottish island.

In 2006, a team purged 10,000 rodents from the island of Canna, part of the Inner Hebrides, where they had almost destroyed a local seabird colony.

Over an eight-month period the pest controllers, who travelled from New Zealand, exterminated the brown rats which had overrun the island, having arrived on ships 100 years ago.

Before the rat eradication could begin, a team from the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland removed a population of wood mice from the island to protect them from the poison.

Rescuers battle wind and waves to pluck 14 fishermen to safety

FRANK URQUHART

THE seas around St Kilda, the remote cluster of rocky islands on the edge of the Continental Shelf in the stormy waters of the Atlantic, have never been a place for faint-hearted seafarers.

And yesterday, 14 Spanish fisherman experienced the danger first-hand when their 169-tonne trawler was virtually lifted ashore by the huge waves in a force-nine gale.

Details emerged after a dramatic rescue of the crew by the Coastguard.

At one stage, the pilot of the helicopter was forced to hovver dangerously close to the cliffs of the World Heritage Site, her rotor blades just 20ft from the rock face.

The drama began shortly after 5am yesterday, when the 82ft trawler, the Spinning Dale, was driven on to rocks on Village Bay, on the eastern edge of the main island of Hirta.

A digital distress signal was picked up at the Coastguard station at Stornoway in the Western Isles.

Captain Liz Forsyth, a former RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot, said: "When we got there it was still pitch black and there was severe turbulence and high seas.

"The vessel was in a V of rocks and as each wave swept right over, it was being washed in and washed out. The winchman, once he was on the deck, said at one point he thought it was actually going right over."

She stressed: "To go in there without being able to see the rising ground in that turbulence would have just been madness. We waited for about half an hour or so until it was light enough to go in."

Capt Forsyth and her crew managed to lower a winchman, Phil Warrington, on to the deck of the trawler. Mr Warrington was repeatedly struck by heavy waves crashing over the vessel, its stern already submerged, as he helped to winch the stranded seamen to safety.

Capt Forsyth was forced to maintain a stable hovering position in the winds buffeting the aircraft close to the cliff.

She said: "The boat was hard in towards the base of the cliff, but the cliff face was sloping away. Where we were hovering, the tips of the rotors were about 20ft away from the cliff face. It was quite a tricky operation.

"We had to put the winchman on the bow because the back of the boat was submerged under the water. The main problem was for the winchman, who was having the waves crashing over this head. He had bruises up his arm just from hanging on to the deck as each wave went through."

They winched the crew off two at a time. Capt Forsyth, 34, said: "They were very relieved when they got on board.

"It was one of the most hazardous operations I have ever been involved in."

At 9:06am all 14 fishermen were safely on board the helicopter. One man had an injury to his hand and four were suffering from suspected hypothermia.

The injured trawlermen were transferred to the Western Isles Hospital for treatment, while the other crewmen were cared for by officials from the local fishermen's mission.

TRIBUTE TO RESCUE TEAMS

RESCUERS were hailed for their bravery today after saving 23 people stranded on a ferry battered by a massive storm.

Rescue teams were scrambled to help the Riverdance, after a huge wave hit the vessel at about 7:30pm on Thursday, 12 miles off the Lancashire coast, causing it to list.

Airman Rich Taylor was winched down from the helicopter in the 70mph winds, while below, a lifeboat crew battled 20ft waves to reach the scene.

Tom Harris, the UK transport minister, thanked the rescuers, including crews from the RAF, Royal Navy, and the English and Irish coastguard services.

"These people put their lives at risk and I'm sure the 23 people on board are going to be eternally grateful," he said.

The Riverdance, a truck ferry which was crossing from Warrenpoint in Northern Ireland to Heysham in Lancashire, is now beached about 400 yards off Blackpool, listing to one side.