Galician fishing vessel crew rescued after grounding in Scotland

All 17 crew members of the Galician fishing vessel ‘Génesis’, owned by the company Basoñas Mar, have been rescued after the ship ran aground near the Old Man of Hoy in the Orkney Islands, northern Scotland.

The vessel issued a distress signal shortly after 7:30 AM after striking rocks in a difficult-to-access area near a cliff. Due to challenging weather conditions and the ship's location, a sea-based rescue was ruled out, necessitating an aerial evacuation.

The rescue operation involved multiple agencies, including helicopters from the Sumburgh and Stornoway Coastguard services, a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat from Stromness, ground teams from Kirkwall and St Margaret's Hope, and a Royal Air Force patrol aircraft. A passenger ferry, the Hamnavoe, also diverted from its route to assist. The crew was successfully evacuated by a Stornoway helicopter and transported to Kirkwall. The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency confirmed that no injuries were reported among the crew.