Fishing News

Times are tougher than ever before for shellfish fishermen on the Northeast coast of England. Over the past 18 months, vast numbers of dead and dying shellfish have been washed up on the beaches. The cause of the deaths is still disputed despite several investigations.

Narrow paths run between tiny front gardens, and I watch my feet as I pick my way through broken glass and dog excrement. There are bags of rubbish, old carpets and broken plastic toys in the front of the houses, along with plastic planters, overgrown with weeds.

This was one of seven emergency callouts dealt with so far this year by William McLeod, Fishermen’s Mission Area Officer for the Western Isles. Here, William tells us what happens when the rescue is completed, and the helicopter has gone – but the casualty remains.