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Unwell skipper fell asleep before trawler crashed, investigators find

MAIB The fishing boat has capsized on a rocky shore. It has a red, white and blue hull and a white cabin.MAIB
The Silver Cloud II ran aground on 14 October last year

A fishing boat ran aground after its skipper fell asleep while on watch at night, accident investigators have said.

The Silver Cloud II's crew managed to get off the boat uninjured when it grounded on rocks near Lochinver last October. The vessel later sank.

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said the skipper likely fell asleep due to an "acute level of fatigue" exacerbated by being ill with flu-like symptoms and having not taken enough rest.

In a report, investigators said the crew was well-drilled for potential accidents.

Silver Cloud II was a 49ft (15m) prawn trawler that operated out of Ullapool and Gairloch on the west Highland coast.

It ran aground at 02:38 on 14 October on rocks at Rubha Rodha.

The crew - who were below deck - and the skipper were awoken by the impact and they went on to discover about 3ft (1m) of rising water in one of the holds.

The skipper decided to abandon the boat, and the crew put on their lifejackets before escaping from the vessel.

The MAIB said skipper had unintentionally fallen asleep before the accident.