WD MERSEY

With no Type 45 destroyer lying alongside at Scotstoun, Clydeport has taken the opportunity to dredge the river bed along the face of the fitting out quay using Westminster Dredging's trailing suction hopper dredger WD MERSEY. Seen passing DRAGON - now bereft of the large red Welsh dragon that emblazoned her bow until a few days ago - WD MERSEY had just completed another session at Scotstoun and was setting off for the dumping ground at the mouth of Loch Long. Built by Achille Lucchese at their Venice shipyard in 1984 and named BRAGADIN when new, she was initially used for dredging work locally. In 2007, she was renamed WD MERSEY when acquired by the Boskalis Group, parent company of Westminster Dredging. Her hopper has a capacity for 1,836 m³ of spoil which is around 3,000 tonnes. She is 67.6 metres in length, and was hired to dredge at Scotstoun and at the entrance to Rothesay Dock.