•The Southern boundary of this Sector begins at the
Highland/Argyll border near the village of Duror. The
flank team to the South is at Appin (Oban Sector)
Going north from here the area of responsibility ends
at Lochailort (there are no actual boundaries as the teams
work together) Lochailort is the last stretch of two lane
road before the Mallaig road begins.
•Both shores of Loch Linnhe are patrolled by the
Fort William team. Access to the Western shore is either
by road which means a long drive around the head of Loch
Eil or by using the Corran Ferry. There is a small passenger
only ferry which runs from Fort William to Trislaig on
the far side.
•The Sector Manager is co located with the team in
Corpach. The building is an ex British Waterway's bungalow
and the Coastguard Response vehicle, a Nissan Terrano
is kept in a detached garage in front of the main building.
The response area also covers the inland waterways as
far East as Fort Augustus. This includes the Caledonian
Canal and Loch's Lochy and Oich. VHF communications are
through Clyde MRCC on their Torosay (South Mull) aerial
and the new aerial site at Achindaul in the Great Glen
extending our coverage East to Fort Augustus and beyond
plus parts of Loch Eil.
The busiest areas in this teams remit are Loch Linnhe
and the canal system. Loch Linnhe is a busy waterway due
to the West/East link.
•The flank team to the North is Mallaig and to the
East, Fort Augustus which is part of Inverness Sector.
•The team work closely with both Lochaber MRT and Glencoe MRT, (Mountain Rescue Teams).
•Commercial traffic comprises of regular cargo vessels
(2 per week on average) taking away logs, wood and wood chips. Since the
completion of the new pier more and larger vessels (up
to 3000 GRT) will be transiting the Loch.
•The Oban Lifeboat presently provides waterborne
SAR, (Search And Rescue), coverage whereas air coverage
is by Navy, RAF and Coastguard helicopters. The main landing
site being at the paper mill and the secondary site at
the West End car park.
•Team members are:
SO- Pete Thurston who works for Campbell Homes as a
joiner
CRO- Jason Thurston Self employed musician/teacher
CRO- Martin Sangster who works for Scottish
& Southern Energy
CRO- Ewen Smith who works for Alcan
CRO- Darren Chambers who works for The
Scottish Ambulance Service
CRO- Calum Smith who works for The Highland Council
CRO- Andrew O'Hagan who also works for Scottish & Southern Energy
CRO- Karen Lamb who works as a care assistant
CRO- Dawna Connelly who works for the SSPCA
CRO- Mark Campbell who works for the Royal Mail
CRO- Ali Thurston
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