Wind farm worker, 74, dies after he’s stranded by snow

AN elderly man died after heavy snow left him stranded while working at a remote wind farm.

Police said the 74-year-old and a younger colleague were marooned at Afton wind farm in Ayrshire without heat or power amid bleak conditions.

It is understood the pair, who were thought to have taken shelter in a cabin, struggled to call for help before managing to raise the alarm on Sunday evening.

Police Scotland’s mountain rescue team was able to locate the men, who were working at the site in the Carsphairn forest ten miles south of New Cumnock.

The force confirmed that the older man had been airlifted to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where he later died.

It is not yet known how long the pair had been trapped at the wind farm, which was bought for £78million by an investment company in 2016. But the incident came amid heavy snowfall and sub-zero temperatures in the area over the weekend.

Southern Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway were among the worst hit areas, with police forced to close roads, including the A76, in the New Cumnock area.

A yellow weather warning had been issued by the Met Office on Sunday, urging people to be prepared for a significant snow storm.

The Afton wind farm development is being constructed in a forest clearing near Craigdarroch, an isolated area of farmland. A police spokesman said: ‘Around 8.50pm on Sunday, police officers received a report of two men having become stranded without heat or power at a wind farm near Craigdarroch Farm, New Cumnock.

‘Police Scotland mountain rescue team attended and located two men aged 74 and 42.

‘A joint investigation between Police Scotland and the Health and Safety Executive is being carried out.

‘A report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.’

The entrance to the wind farm remained blocked by police late last night. Residents in the nearby town of New Cumnock were shocked by the news. One local said: ‘It’s awful. The first we heard of it was today on the radio. I don’t know what’s happened but there were a lot of police going up and down the road.

‘We saw a helicopter flying over at one point too but we had no idea people were stuck up there or there was an accident.’

Another added: ‘There’s been a lot of police about today. I think the manager of the project came to town yesterday as well after hearing the news of someone dying.

‘We thought at first the police were heading up the road because the weather had been so bad and there was a lot of flooding but we had no idea.’

The Health and Safety Executive confirmed it was investigating the incident.

Meanwhile a statement issued by Afton Wind Farm Limited said: ‘We confirm that there has been a fatality in connection with the project.

‘Our deepest sympathy and thoughts are with the family of the deceased at this time.

‘Health and safety is taken very seriously by management and we are cooperating with the HSE and police in their investigations.

‘In addition, we have also commenced our own independent investigation into the incident.’

On Monday, a 64-year-old man was rescued from snow drifts after leaving his remote forest cottage four miles outside Eskdalemuir, Dumfriesshire, to seek help following nearly a week without heat or electric light.

Former soldier Raymond Cibor was pulled from waist-deep snow after becoming exhausted during a four-hour battle to reach a nearby community.

He managed to drag himself more than a mile in freezing conditions before using his mobile phone to raise the alarm around 5pm on Sunday.