The Orcadian Features - 2001 Review

A look back at events of 2001

FEBRUARY

OIC chief executive, Mr Alistair Buchan, stepped into the fray over the ferry terminal plans, strongly defending the way the council had acted, but conceding that the speed of reaching the decision was not ideally how he would have liked to have gone about the matter.
Lorraine Shearer, a reporter at The Orcadian, won a prize in the Highlands and Islands Media Awards, being highly commended in the Local Newspaper Reporter of the Year category.
The freeze that gripped Scotland finally made its way to Orkney which saw temperatures dip to -15 degrees C. Hundreds of children enjoyed an unexpected two day holiday when most of the island’s schools were closed, and more than 300 people were left without electricity.
Orcadians learned that their water charges would rise by 17 per cent from April.
Work on removing the oil from the wreck of the World War Two warship HMS Royal Oak finally began this month and was expected to be completed in September. The initial five-week project saw around 100 tonnes of oil removed from a leaking area under the ship’s boiler room.
The Orkney Flag created by “flag experts” in 1994 was found to be Irish and couldn’t be used for official purposes without risking the wrath of the Lord Lyon King of Arms, it was announced this month. A suggestion was made to the council about flying the flag from public buildings to mark St Magnus Day on April 16, but after seeking advice on heraldry, council officials discovered that the flag actually belonged to an Irish family and therefore couldn’t be sanctioned for use in Orkney.
Councillors recommended setting up a steering group along with representatives of Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Orkney Enterprise to take forward the idea of developing a container trans-shipment port in Scapa Flow. This would increase the number of tanker-sized vessels using Scapa Flow, with feeder ships taking containers to and from European ports and further afield.
Farmers’ leaders in Orkney, Shetland and Caithness called for a public meeting with the chairman of the Scottish Agricultural College this month, to discuss the planned closure of the Thurso veterinary laboratory.
Office bearers from the NFU branches covering the three areas met in Kirkwall to discuss the effect the closure would have on the farming communities.