Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Gourdon fisherman lost at sea for 48 hours “objects” to MAIB report

Gourdon fishermen Jim Reid and David Irvine in Montrose after their 48 hour ordeal at sea
Gourdon fishermen Jim Reid and David Irvine in Montrose after their 48 hour ordeal at sea

Two fishermen who went missing in the North Sea for 48 hours could have spared their family the “traumatic experience” of thinking they were dead had they been better prepared, a report has ruled.

Skipper Jim Reid, 75, and his grandson David Irvine launched a major search after they failed to return home from a trip in their fishing boat, the Water Rail, last May.

However, last night Mr Reid said he took “umbrage” at some of the findings of the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB)’s report.

He insisted he and his grandson had checked the forecast before setting out and had been told the thick fog was due to clear, otherwise they would not have gone out.

He said: “I object to them saying I can’t read a compass. I take umbrage. I’ve been fishing between Inverbervie and Gourdon 50-odd years, I have kept a compass all my days.

“I wasn’t out myself, there was other boats out as well.

Mr Reid added that he only discovered the compass was faulty when it was too late.

“The compass was wrong. It was discovered later it wasn’t working and it went into reverse, it was 180-degrees out. I have read a compass for 50 years odd years and I’ve not gotten lost,” he said.

“It was the forecast that was wrong, not me”.

After two days scouring the water in thick fog, rescuers called off the search for the 16ft creeler, which Mr Reid had operated for more than 10 years.

But, miraculously, the grandfather and grandson from Inverbervie, were eventually spotted by the crew of a passing trawler, who rescued the tired and hungry men.

Gourdon fishermen Jim Reid and David Irvine in Montrose after their 48 hour ordeal at sea
Gourdon fishermen Jim Reid and David Irvine in Montrose after their 48 hour ordeal at sea

Yesterday, marine experts ruled that they were “extremely fortunate” to have been found, and that Mr Reid’s “poor safety practices” had caused an “unnecessary” search.

The MAIB said its probe into the incident found that he did not have the “competence” necessary to navigate his vessel, and was incredibly ill-equipped.

“The skipper did own a suitable VHF radio. Had the skipper taken his VHF radio to sea with him, the alarm could have been raised soon after he became lost,” the report into the incident stated.

The eight-month long investigation also criticised Mr Reid’s grandson, David, for heading out onto the water with no safety training.

The report also stated that the compass on board had not been installed, set up or operated correctly.

A police officer at Gourdon Harbour on May 20, when the fishermen went missing
A police officer at Gourdon Harbour on May 20, when the fishermen went missing

Mr Reid added that the ordeal had not put him off fishing “one bit”.

He now takes two functioning compasses and a tin of chocolate biscuits with him – just in case.

The MAIB ruled that he always take a radio out with him, a Personal Location Beacon and a life jacket.

It also said he must attend a navigation training course, ensure that he has all the necessary safety equipment on board and make sure that all his crew are trained.