This morning peace activists blockaded the nuclear weapon depot at Coulport on Loch Long, hampering day-shift worker traffic entering the base to a trickle and stopping it completely for almost an hour. At 7 a.m. a group of 6 women lay down in the main entrance to the base and locked on to each other using plastic pipes. At the same time another group blocked the alternative entrance to the depot known as the Construction Gate using a tripod.

Activists used lock-on tubes to block the road

Police allowed traffic to pass close to activists until 3 moved to block the entire road making traffic movement impossible

The tripod was twice as high as a Transit van and was constructed with wooden poles and rope

After a complex cutting out operation the police arrested and took into custody the six women at the main gate. They are: Pippa Robertson from Aberdeen; Carol Livingstone from Paisley; Angie Zelter from Cromer in Norfolk; Jane Smith from Grantown on Spey; Jane Tallents from Helensburgh; Sue Hushing-Tree from London. A little later the police assembled scaffolding and removed Andy from Glasgow who was also arrested.

Police climbing crew used a tower to remove the tripod activist.

Supporters stayed and observed the removal to make sure their friends were treated well by police.

All of the women were released later on in the day and Andrew is being held for court due to a previous action against Army recruitment. The aim of the activists was to disrupt the work of a base whose operation they is illegal under international law, and to draw attention to the reality of the UK’s weapons of mass destruction.

A Trident submarine seen the previous week.

Trident nuclear warheads are stored in Coulport’s bunkers and loaded there onto the missiles on the submarines. The protestors were staying at a two week Trident Ploughshares disarmament camp near to the Coulport base. Earlier in the camp people had taken part in painting actions. Six were arrested for painting rocks at Faslane on two seperate occasions and another three were arrested for painting around the gate-way also at faslane.

Slogans were painted all around the front of the base.

Two were also arrested for cutting the fence at Coulport in an attempt to enter the base. On the first of September a Trident Submarine was seen operating in the area. Activists took to the hills at the Coulport base to protest.

The Trident Submarine travels up Loch Goil towards the Maytime test range with two tug boats.

They were eventualy warned off the MOD land and escorted back to the camp.

Protestors held banners while being escorted by MOD police with dogs and on quad bikes.

As people from the TP camp returned from a visit and dinner at the nearby Faslane Peace Camp slogans were spotted at the Coulport Base. Two women had painted the bollards at the base with slogans such as "Jesus Hates Bombs" and peace symbols. They are currently at the Faslane Processing Centre and are expected to be released later on tonight. For more information contact the Trident Ploughshares camp on 08454588361.

Related

http://www.tridentploughshares.org