New pictures give an aerial view of a ship that lurched to its side in a dry dock in Edinburgh – in what a dockside worker described as a “very scary” incident.
The Petrel, a research vessel, moved into a 45-degree angle during strong winds early on Wednesday morning, prompting a major rescue operation at Imperial Dock in Leith.
A total of 35 people were injured, 21 of whom were treated in hospital. On Thursday, 14 remain in hospital for treatment.
One of the aerial pictures gives a clear view of the ship’s maroon-painted hull below its dark blue flanks.
From that angle, it appears that it slipped almost completely onto its side.
The other images suggest its angle of tilt is shallower, however.
James Walsh, 39, is a scaffolder on the docks and was working nearby when he heard a “loud noise”.
“It wasn’t as noisy as you would think, for the catastrophe that it could possibly be,” he said.
“We stopped what we were doing. I’m the foreman, so I just evaluated the situation. We were on the docks further up and we were advised we were fine where we were.”
Nevertheless, he said it was “scary, very scary”, and it made him “evaluate everything really”.
He went on: “It’s so scary that you go to work and something like that can possibly happen. It’s bad enough having a near accident, that’s scary enough, or a minimal accident, but something like that in this day and age…”
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Colin Agnew also works on the docks. “We just heard noise and we wondered what it was,” he said.
“Then all of a sudden you were hearing all the police, fire engines, and the ambulance come in.
“It was crazy because you wouldn’t think you would hear that down by here. It was just crazy.”
Police Scotland said all casualties were removed by 1.20pm.
Superintendent Mark Rennie said: “There is no risk to the wider public and inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances of what has happened. The Health and Safety Executive has been informed.”
The Petrel was previously bought and outfitted by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, but it is no longer owned by his estate.
A wind speed of 38mph was recorded in Edinburgh at 8am on Wednesday, while a 44mph gust was recorded at 9am, according to Met Office data.
