Shetland Islands Council papers have revealed that the authority was forced to spend more than £27,000 dredging the seabed at the Gutcher ferry terminal in Yell last September after gravel started damaging its Bluemull Sound ferries.
A council report to next Tuesday’s harbour board meeting says the vessels, which connect Yell with neighbouring Unst and Fetlar, were striking the seabed on the approach to the terminal’s linkspan during the spring and summer of 2015.
The cause of the damage was a shallow bar of gravel that had formed under the ferry berth.
A barge-mounted dredger from Buckie carried out the emergency dredging to avoid more significant damage to stern gear, as access from the shore was not possible.
The vessel removed around 400 tonnes of sand and gravel overnight on 16 September to avoid disruption to the ferry timetable.
The total cost of the incident was £27,482.13, which was met within the council’s budget.
Council standing orders require competitive tendering for projects costing more than £10,000, but in this case it was deemed an emergency and therefore the job was not advertised.
