Grief for tragedy tugboat victims
Investigation into deaths
The bodies of two men whose tugboat overturned were found yesterday.
The tragedy on Friday afternoon happened as Biter was towing cruise liner The Hebridean Princess into East India Harbour in Greenock.
Police divers who resumed the search for the men yesterday found their bodies at 1.40pm close to Custom House Quay.
The next of kin of both men have been made aware of the find.
Chief Inspector Damian Kane, local area commander, said: “Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the men at this difficult time and I would ask that their privacy is respected
“I would like to thank the local community for their patience and support as searches were ongoing and as we continue to carry out our inquiries.”
Formal identification was due to take place later as well as post mortems to establish cause of death.
An investigation has begun to find out why the 1982-built tugboat sunk.
The stricken vessel is owned by Clyde Marine Services, which has offices in nearby Victoria Harbour.
The company is run by local man Hamish Munro, 59 and his sister Gillian Baker, 60.
It is expected a Fatal Accident Inquiry
will be held into the deaths. Emergency crews had been called to East India Harbour at about 3.30pm on Friday.
Rescuers were seen climbing on to the overturned hull before it sank.
HM Coastguard and police continued searching for the men until about 8pm.
A huge cordon around the harbour was in place yesterday as investigations into the accident continued.
Eyewitnesses said they saw the Biter escorting the Hebridean Princess cruise ship into the harbour when it keeled over.
Images showed rescue teams surrounding the capsized tug.
The Hebridean Princess typically sails around the west coast of Scotland, occasionally visiting Northern Ireland, Norway and the Channel Islands.