Rescue crews called out twice within hours

Rescue teams have been kept busy with two separate call-outs in recent days.

In the early hours of yesterday morning, a crew from the Aberdeen coastguard rescue team and a unit from RNLI’s Aberdeen lifeboat crew were asked to investigate reports of a red flare sighted in the direction Battery.

From 1.45am an area of the Torry from Torry to Nigg Bay was checked and vessels in the bay were called to find out where the flare had originated.

The team eventually stood down at 2.45am with no trace of the flare being found.

It was the third report of red flares being fired this month.

Just hours earlier, at 10.15pm on Sunday night, a member of the public reported concerns after seeing a lone dinghy far from the Aberdeen shoreline.

A crew from ACRT raced to the scene where they found a lone sailor fishing safely in his dinghy.

The fisherman then headed back to shore, as the still waters meant that there was no danger of his dinghy being blown offshore.

A Coastguard spokesperson said: “We received a call from a member of the public who had concerns about a dinghy in the water.

“They weren’t in any difficulty, but we do remind people that the nights will soon be getting darker and to avoid staying on the water too late.”

“Eventually stood down at 2.45am with no trace of the flare”

Martin Leahy