Tragedy at Loch Awe: Two men die after late-night boat accident in Scotland – two remain missing

Two men have died and two are still missing, feared dead, after a boating accident in Scotland.

The bodies of William Carty, aged 47, and Craig Currie, 30, were recovered from Loch Awe in Argyll early yesterday. The search for the other two, Steven Carty, 42, brother of William, and 36-year-old Thomas Douglas, was called off at 5pm, and was set to resume this morning.

The men, who had been on a fishing trip, got into difficulties as they tried to cross the loch in their small boat, back to their campsite, on Friday night. The men, who came from Glasgow, had been camping on the banks of the loch near Kilchurn Castle. Police say the four men took the boat across the loch to a pub and left around 11pm.

A fifth member of the group, who remained at the campsite, woke at 3am to hear his companions calling for help and alerted the emergency services. Rescue attempts were hampered by fog, and at times visibility was reduced to five metres. Rescuers reported hearing calls for help from the loch when they arrived, but an RAF helicopter was unable to find the men.

Inspector Andrew Mosley, of Strathclyde Police, said the two men, who were wearing life jackets, were declared dead at the scene.

One of the pub's owners, Marie Sommerville, said: "They were really nice guys," adding that they were "definitely not drunk" when they left the pub.