Survey Vessel Finds Unexploded World War II Mine Off Western Scotland

5th December 2020

The World War II mine was found in the Firth of Clyde on Tuesday 1 December Credit: Royal Navy

A World War II mine found in “remarkable” condition off western Scotland earlier this week contained 350kg of explosives, according to the Royal Navy.

The unexploded ordnance was discovered by a Marine Scotland survey vessel in the Firth of Clyde on Tuesday afternoon (1 December).

Belfast Coastguard tasked Troon RNLI to the scene, north-east the Isle of Arran, to retrieve non-essential personnel from the 68m survey vessel and bring them to safety on the lifeboat.

As BBC News reports, the survey vessel was then sailed to Ettrick Bay on the Isle of Bute, where bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion of the mine.

“From the initial pictures, we were able to easily identify the mine type and importantly determine that the explosive fill was intact and therefore presented a significant hazard,” said Lieutenant Commander Mark Shaw of the Royal Navy.

BBC News has more on the story HERE.

Published in News Update, RNLI Lifeboats, Scottish Waters

Published in News Update

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