03/08/2006

Greenhill trawler to be raised

A fishing trawler, which went missing close to Ardglass harbour in January this year, is to be raised from the sea-bed.

The family of one of the fishermen who went missing after the vessel sank, is to be briefed about the plans to recover the boat.

Conor Bogues, a 26-year-old father of two from Ballynahinch, County Down, disappeared after the Greenhill went down on January 19.

Despite numerous searches of the County Down coastline, both above and below water, Mr Bogues' body was never found.

His friend and colleague, 22-year-old Donall Gibson, also died during the incident, however his body was recovered shortly after the vessel sank.

The captain of the trawler survived after being picked up by coastguard.

The operation to raise the Greenhill, which is lying under around 80 feet of water, is expected to last a number of days.

A spokesperson for the PSNI today said that police divers were planning an operation to examine the sea-bed surrounding the boat.

"This will be co-ordinated as the recovery operation by the contractors progresses," and added that "the family of Conor Bogues are being kept informed."

Alex Slater, from the fisherman's mission in Ardglass, today said that it is unlikely that the body of Mr Bogues will be recovered at this stage, and added that while the Greenhill lay underwater, it posed a threat to other ships.

He continued that the boat has been disintegrating and there are fears that debris could be spread around the surrounding area.

He said: "The lives of two good men have already been lost and we don't want to lose any more."

(EF)

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