Skara Brae visit for Deputy First Minister

Deputy First Minister and Orkney MSP Mr Jim Wallace visited Skara Brae on Friday, to give his backing to an free open weekend to encourage visitors back to Historic Scotland sites.

Despite only reopening recently, the message is now that the majority of Historic Scotland's Orkney sites are well and truly open for business. As an incentive to visitors they are offering a free weekend next Saturday and Sunday - April 28 and 29.

As well as giving his support, Mr Wallace firmly stressed that it was important that visitors stayed within the allowed areas.

"There are two messages - the fact is that in many parts of Scotland and Historic Scotland sites in particular are open for business and we would obviously encourage people to visit but, be responsible and follow the Come Back Code which is well signposted here."

Tall Tales Trust formed to promote storytelling and folklore

A new organisation aiming to preserve and develop Orcadian folklore and storytelling has been formed - the inaugural meeting of the Tall Tales Trust taking place on Thursday in Stromness.

Trust chairman Tom Muir explained that the purpose of the new group is not only to preserve what is left of traditional Orcadian folklore, but also to develop and promote it throughout the county.

Already in the pipeline is another storytelling festival - running from October 25 to 29 - with a series of school visits, storytelling events and lectures also planned.

More details in this week's The Orcadian
Archive Story: Festival aims to rekindle storytelling tradition

Police seek litter bin vandals

The first fire was discovered by police around 1.30am on Friday. Kirkwall Fire Brigade extinguished the fire, only to discover that four more bins along Victoria Street had also been set alight.

A police spokesman said that all fires were extinguished and that only minor damage was caused. He asked that anyone with information should contact Kirkwall police on 872241.

Agricultural societies to meet on fate of 2001 shows

A meeting later this month could determine the fate of this year's major agricultural shows, due to take place during the first two weeks in August.

As more agricultural shows on the Scottish mainland are cancelled because of the foot-and-mouth crisis, Orkney's agricultural societies have decided to meet on Monday, April 30, to discuss whether this year's agricultural shows in Orkney should go ahead.

Man bailed for Bothy breach of peace

A man appeared from custody on Thursday and admitted breaching his bail conditions by threatening the manager of the Albert Hotel in the Bothy Bar, Kirkwall on Wednesday night.

Jason Power (30) c/o Sacro, also admitted refusing to leave the Albert Hotel, Kirkwall, and was released on bail.

Sentence was deferred until May 23 when Power is also due to face trial for allegedly killing a cat in Stromness and of the alleged theft of various items.

Camoran children skew missing people figures

Among other things, the figures show that 24 people have been reported missing so far this year. However, this, say police, is largely down to children absconding from the council-run children's home, Camoran, in Kirkwall.

Sergeant David Miller explained: "(The figures) can be put down very simply to the fact that we had one or two children in Camoran at that particular period. They were reported almost daily to us."

More details of the report

SNH want further discussions on Scapa Flow hub

At a board meeting in Stromness on Thursday, North Area Director, Mr Jeff Watson, said that although SNH recognised that it was possible for significant industrial developments to coexist alongside environmentally sensitive areas, citing the Flotta Terminal as an example, SNH will look for the highest possible environmental standards if the hub project goes ahead.

Orkney and Shetland area manager, Mr John Uttley, felt that it would be useful to build in strict environmental safeguards at an early stage.

OIC convener, Councillor Hugh Halcro-Johnston, Orkney's representative on the board, said he would keep members informed of the scheme's progress so they had the chance to express their views.

Kirkwall man dies after collapsing outside Sheriff Court

The 67-year-old Kirkwall man who collapsed outside the Sheriff Court building at Watergate on Wednesday has died in Balfour Hospital.

The man, who has not been named, collapsed around 1.10pm on Wednesday, hitting his head near the steps into the Sheriff Court building.

According to Inspector Paul Eddington, a police officer drove the ambulance to the hospital while the paramedics treated the injured man.

He died shortly after in hospital, Inspector Eddington said.

Man on bail for second time in two days

A Longhope man was released on bail for a second time in two days at Kirkwall Sheriff Court on Wednesday.

Raymond Andrew Sutherland, c/o The Stoup, Longhope, appeared from custody and denied breaching bail conditions set only a day earlier, and a breach of the peace at an address in Longhope. A trial date has been fixed for May 23.

Sutherland had appeared from custody on Tuesday morning when he admitted two assaults on a woman on Sunday, April 15 at 19 and 25 St Colms Quadrant in Longhope.

Blank sheet for hub consultants

The OIC have this week issued prospectuses to a shortlist of five consultancy firms looking into the idea of creating a container trans-shipment hub in Scapa Flow.

The potential sites have been identified as Hunda, Lyness, Flotta and Hangaback in Orphir.

New oil field discovery will secure Flotta until 2020

Talisman Energy have announced the discovery of "significant" reserves of oil in a field near Piper B in the North Sea.

The find will, they say, help to secure the life of the Flotta Terminal until 2020.

Preliminary estimates of the reserves in the Lucy Field were in the range of 20-50 million barrels and it is expected that production from the new field will be fed into the Flotta Terminal via the existing North Sea pipeline system.

Indications are that first oil from the Lucy Field may come on stream late next year.

Orkney agencies highlight foot-and-mouth assistance measures

Key agencies in Orkney are working together to co-ordinate the delivery of Government measures, aimed at helping local businesses hit by the current foot-and-mouth crisis.

Although there are no cases of the disease in Orkney, many local villages, particularly in the tourism sector, are suffering from the knock-on effects of the outbreak further south.

Orkney Islands Council, Orkney Enterprise and Orkney Tourist Board want to make sure that local businesses are aware of the help available to them during this period - help that includes rates relief, grants and reduced membership fees.

Full story >

Talisman sign £30 million maintenance deal with Kvaerner

Talisman have signed a £30 million deal with the Aberdeen-based Oil and Gas Division of Kvaerner, to provide maintenance and engineering support for all the facilities within the Flotta Catchment Area - including the terminal itself and the feeder platforms in the Piper B, Claymore, Saltire and Tartan fields.

Four Orkney seafood companies attend European exposition

Four Orkney Seafood companies are attending the European Seafood Exposition - the world's largest Seafood show - in Brussels next week.

Orkney Quality Food and Drink, Orkney Herring, Orkney Salmon and Orkney Seafarms will market their products with 42 other companies from all over Scotland in the exhibition which runs from Tuesday to Thursday next week.

Lifeboat ferries firefighters to North Ronaldsay blaze

The Kirkwall lifeboat was launched on Tuesday night to carry Kirkwall firemen to a blaze in North Ronaldsay.

The lifeboat left Kirkwall around 7.30pm carrying six firefighters to assist the nine members of the North Ronaldsay auxiliary force attending the fire at the house of Ancum.

According to a fire brigade spokesman the fire was extinguished around 9pm, the house suffering 25 per cent fire damage as well as smoke and heat-damage.

Ministers treating Invergordon service "extremely urgently" but no answer yet

Councillors are still waiting to hear from the Scottish Executive on the future of the Kirkwall-Invergordon ferry service although the Scottish Executive have said that the matter is being treated urgently.

A Scottish Executive spokesman said on Wednesday morning: "The ministers are aware of the urgency of the situation and are currently considering it. They are also aware of the time pressure and are giving it their attention extremely urgently."

Unless some form of aid package for the troubled ferry service can be secured, Streamline will stop sailing on April 26.

The OIC promised up to £50,000 to maintain the service, on the condition that funding is also provided by the Scottish Executive.

SERAD offer money to Thurso Vet Lab

The Thurso vet lab is to receive £72,000 from SERAD towards the cost of upgrading the laboratory.

Following the decision to keep the lab open, depute principal Professor Bill McKelvey has confirmed that SERAD had offered to contribute money provided the remainder could be raised locally.

"We need CASE (Caithness and Sutherland Enterprise) to come in with money as well. We were led to believe, when we said we'd close the centre, that there was a high likelihood that they would also contribute." he said.

"The main thing that swung the SAC was the Orcadian protest," Professor McKelvey said, adding: "We still need local support from enterprise companies and health schemes."

The food on offer at a college training restaurant in Elgin this week has had a distinctly Orcadian flavour.

Diners at Moray College's Beechtree restaurant have been able to sample the finest Orkney has to offer with dishes prepared with the assistance of Orkney Quality Food and Drink, Orkney Enterprise and Highland Park.

At the head of the project is student Vicky Morrison who said that the idea for an Orkney week came from an Orcadian member of staff.

Minister launches second phase of Kirkwall's Kiln Corner redevelopment

The Minister left Orkney on Wednesday after meeting with representatives of Orkney Islands Council and Orkney Housing Association.

A man was taken into in custody on Monday following an alleged hit-and-run incident in Kirkwall in the afternoon.

Inspector Paul Eddington said that around 3.30pm on Monday, a pedestrian received minor injuries after being hit by a vehicle at the Kirkwall pierhead. It is alleged that the driver of the vehicle failed to stop.

The man was released from custody on Monday evening and a report is being submitted to the procurator fiscal.

Kirkwall Police were called out on Monday after reports of a road accident on Kirkwall's Junction Road.

Police were alerted around 3.30pm after a man was seen lying in the middle of the road, outside the old Kirkwall Auction Mart building.

However, Inspector Paul Eddington explained that when police arrived it became clear that the reported accident victim was actually suffering an epileptic fit. The man was taken to the Balfour Hospital for treatment.

Norwegian Prince opens St Magnus Centre

Crown Prince Haakon Magnus meets Cathedral minister Ron Ferguson during his visit on Monday (Picture: Orkney Photographic)

The new St Magnus Centre was officially opened on Monday with Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway paying a brief visit to the Orkney to carry out the ceremony.

After a service in St Magnus Cathedral, Crown Prince Haakon officially opened the £600,000 centre - exactly one year after the first turf was cut.

The Crown Prince arrived in the county around 2pm for his only official engagement this year, and flew out again around later in the afternoon.

Farmers urge travellers to heed precautions after Highland foot-and-mouth scare

Orkney farmers have repeated a plea to travellers to take all necessary precautions to ensure foot-and-mouth disease is not inadvertently brought into the county.

The call came following the news that a Highland crofter was feared to have brought the disease back to his Sutherland croft after recent visits to Cumbria.

Tourist industry support brochure welcomed

A brochure supporting the tourist industry through the current foot-and-mouth crisis has been welcomed locally.

The Survival Toolkit for Tourism Businesses offers advice and contacts to people working in the tourist industry as well as a range of ideas to help affected businesses survive the damaging effects of foot-and-mouth.

Welcoming the initiative, Orkney Tourist Board chief executive Mr Gareth Crichton said: "I think it's very helpful. Anything that helps to ease businesses through difficult times is welcome."

The Hoy Half Marathon, a major event in the island's calendar, is being postponed because of the current foot-and-mouth crisis.

Originally scheduled for June 10, a decision will made in June as to whether the event can be held in August.

Back to reporting for foot-and-mouth vet Gillian

The Orcadian reporter Gillian Wylie arrived back home at the weekend after two weeks working in one of the areas worst hit by foot-and-mouth crisis.

Former vet Gillian was called up in March to help get the disease under control in Cumbria.

After a week of quarantine to ensure she has not carried the disease back to Orkney, Gillian resumed her duties as a reporter at The Orcadian on Monday.

Archive story: Local vet working at epicentre of crisis

BA remain committed but no sign of lower fares

In a letter to Mr Wallace, BA's Edmond Rose said there were no plans to change from the current aircraft used on the route.

Mr Wallace wrote that regrettably one thing remains constant - the "exceptionally high level of fares".

In reply, Mr Rose commented: "I must emphasise that we face high operating costs on the Orkney and Shetland routes so it would be very difficult to reduce fares and keep the routes viable. The recent removal of Air Passenger Duty on journeys from Orkney and Shetland will, however, go some way towards reducing the cost of air travel for the residents of the islands."

Experts converge on Heart of Neolithic Orkney

From April 27 to 29, experts on all aspects of archaeology, history and culture are meeting in the county to look at how research on the World Heritage Site - the area surrounding the Ring of Brodgar - should be progressed.

Speaking last Friday Jane Downes of Orkney College explained that the delegates will be looking at the archaeology and history of the individual sites as well as the traditions and folklore and the public's perception and feelings towards the ancient monuments.

A document will then be prepared outlining areas of future research they feel should be looked at further.

Speeders beware! Police speeding campaign underway

The operation, which runs until Sunday, aims to reduce speeding and increase awareness of the consequences of driving too fast.

A spokesman for the Northern Constabulary said: "Our message is simple - think about the facts, driving at excess speed can have horrific and even fatal consequences."

The Corrigall Farm Museum in Harray, however, is not re-opening and will remain closed until further notice.

Councillors agree NorthLink harbour dues

Councillors have agreed to a new formula to calculate what new ferry operators, NorthLink, should pay in harbour dues for using Orkney's port facilities.

The formula for compounding the rate normally charged for individual visits for regular harbour users was considered by the OIC's transportation committee on Thursday.

They concluded that a new rate would be required as the new service would be greatly different from the existing ferry operator setup.

Lifeboat launch figures released

According to figures from the RNLI, the Kirkwall, Stromness and Longhope lifeboats landed 18 people (where people are at risk and require to be landed) and brought in 16 people (where people are not at risk, but are brought in before the situation deteriorates) last year.