PEOPLE living close to Aberdeen Harbour were kept awake last night by the loud blast of a ship’s horn.
The horn started going off at around 3am, and residents in the Torry and Ferryhill area have complained they struggled to get back to sleep as it kept blaring through the night.
After the ship’s emergency signal played out seven short blasts, a long blast of the horn followed leading many to believe there was an urgent situation onboard the vessel.
But the Coastguard has since said a faulty horn caused the disruption.
READ MORE: Green freeports 'could block an independent Scotland from joining the EU’
Speaking from the Aberdeen station, the spokesperson said: “The noise was coming from a vessel in dry dock in Aberdeen.
“It appears it had a fault in its horn system.
“It was a false alarm.”
He then joked: “They couldn’t find the off switch.”
Residents spoke on social media about hearing the horn in the middle of the night, with one woman saying she felt like it was “the end of the world”.
“I thought it was the apocalypse,” she posted.
Another woman said: “I’ve been woken up by it as well. Apparently, it can mean abandon ship, or collision. ”
The noise could reportedly be heard for miles, with people in Bridge of Don – north of the city – saying they could hear it too.
One said: “Why is it not stopping?”
Another said: “Because it was an emergency.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here