Nil Desperandum to be scrapped

AN ICONIC local fishing boat that is beyond repair after being left to rot at Hay’s Dock in Lerwick will be broken up over the coming weeks.

The Nil Desperandum was gifted to Shetland Amenity Trust by the late James (Pinkie) Wiseman in 2010, in the hope the trust would do her up and display the 72-year-old fishing boat as part of its collection.

Trust chief executive Mat Roberts said on Tuesday that the challenges of keeping her afloat and in good repair were beyond the trust’s financial abilities.

“Sadly she was left to decay and by 2010 was in a perilous condition. At that point the owners donated her to the Shetland Amenity Trust who, working with volunteers, attempted to stem the damage,” Roberts said.

“Unfortunately, the costs and challenges of keeping her afloat were too great and options were sought for repair and shoreside storage.”

The contract to remove her from Hay’s Dock has been awarded to Garrick Bros. Ltd, which will carry out the work over the next few weeks depending on tides.

Her timbers will be salvaged and donated to a local artist and a local furniture maker to be ‘up-cycled’.