HUMAN remains have been found in a fishing vessel raised from the seabed in an attempt to recover the bodies of two fishermen lost at sea.

Duncan MacDougall and Przemek Krawczyk were on board the Nancy Glen when it capsized in Loch Fyne in Argyll and Bute on January 18.

The alarm was raised by a third fisherman who was pulled from the water by the crew of a passing boat.

Police said yesterday the vessel had been raised to the surface after a specialist lifting barge was brought to the loch.

However it has not been deemed safe for specialist officers from Police Scotland and the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit to enter the boat and complete the recovery and identification process.

Specialist teams will remain on standby until it is deemed safe for them to enter the vessel.

A major search was launched by police and coastguard teams after the boat sank in January but no trace was found of the missing men.

A Crown Office spokesman said: “Work has been ongoing overnight and today to raise and secure the Nancy Glen.

“Salvage teams who have been on board the vessel have described finding human remains.

“While the vessel has now been lifted clear of the water, it remains unsafe for specialist officers from Police Scotland and the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit to enter the boat and complete the recovery and identification process.

“This process will not be completed until it is deemed safe to do so and the specialist teams will remain on standby.

“The families are being kept up to date with the progress being made.

“It is anticipated that the teams will be able to continue their work on Friday.”

A police underwater unit boat was at the scene on Loch Fyne on Wednesday and investigations are continuing.

The Nancy Glen went down in Loch Fyne and the complex operation involved easing the boat out of thick mud at a depth of around 500ft. A remote-controlled submarine was sent in to remove debris and cut any trawl wires still attached to the 40ft Nancy Glen.

The barge then moved into position and cables secured to the wreck.

It was winched up slowly before being towed by a tug closer inshore, then lowered to a depth of 50ft on the seabed.

The salvage experts have been contracted by the Scottish Government and the operation is expected to cost £1million.

The Nancy Glen sank around two miles from Tarbert, Argyll. One crew member survived – John Miller, 34, who was rescued by a passing vessel.

A single was released in memory of the two missing men, which made it to No 1 on Amazon’s Movers and Shakers list and No 36 on iTunes.

A Justgiving page set up for the families of the lost fishermen raised £268,000.

A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that the boat has been raised and that efforts are ongoing in order to make it safe for police officers seeking to recover any bodies on board.”

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) previously conducted a seabed survey of the ship.

The MAIB said it could not raise the boat but the Scottish Government stepped in to work with salvage specialists and the families of the crewmen to support efforts to retrieve the bodies.