Time is running out on a fundraising campaign to save a fleet of historic boats from eviction at a traditional Aberdeen harbour.
For more than 100 years, fishermen have freely used the bay at Cove Harbour to shelter their vessels and harvest the North Sea.
However, the owners of the small fleet of around 10 vessels currently moored in the harbour are now locked in legal proceedings with Prahlad Kolhe – a consultant plastic surgeon who owns the white house overlooking the bay and parts of Cove Harbour – after he ordered them to remove their boats from the shoreline.
And now, the Cove Fishermen’s Association, which represents the men and their families, is aiming to muster £40,000, through a fundraising website, by the end of the month to defend themselves from Mr Kolhe’s eviction order.
So far, they have raised a combined total of just under £4,000 to fight their battle, but the group’s chairman, Jim Adam, said that any cash the public can spare would be welcomed.
Mr Adam added: “There is a lot of emotion on the website where people have been donating. A lot of these folk played down there when they were kids, and some take their grandkids down there fishing.
“We’ve mainly been raising cash online, but some people have been handing in money through the door as well.
“Mr Kolhe refuses to speak to us, and the only time we’ve had communication from him is from his solicitor telling us to move our boats.
“Right now the ball is in his court. He’s either going to drop it or move ahead with it, we’ve not been told.”
In late December, the landowner put in place a number of obstructive boulders and rubble to prevent the fishermen from easily accessing their vessels.
However, officers from Aberdeen City Council wrote to Mr Kolhe last week, asking him to remove the blockade to allow public access.
One week on, the boulders and rubble are still in place at the site.
Mr Kolhe could not be reached yesterday evening for comment.
To donate to the Cove Fishermen’s Association, visit
crowdfunding.justgiving.com/cove-harbour-aberdeen