Poor visibility and rescue service delay blamed for tragedy

Four fisherman motoring across Loch Awe in Scotland drowned over the weekend in thick fog despite rescue services being able to hear the men’s cries from the shore.

Strathclyde Police divers resumed their search this morning for Steven Carty, 42, and Thomas Douglas, 36, after the bodies of William Carty, 47 – Steven’s brother – and Craig Currie, 30, were recovered at about 6:15am on Saturday.

The four men had been to the Tight Line pub on the opposite side of the loch from where they were camping for a weekend fishing trip. The landlord told The Times newspaper, the men had spent an hour there and had not been drunk.

A fifth member of the party was in a tent at a campsite nearby and raised the alarm at around 3:45AM saturday morning, when he realised the other four had not returned from the pub.

Coastguards from Oban, Appin and Inverary were scrambled. But with thick fog ruling out a helicopter rescue, they could do nothing until a Strathclyde Fire and Rescue vessel completed a two-hour road trip from Renfrew.

The two men recovered were both wearing lifejackets.

More on the Scottish Loch tragedy from Google news