Russian submarine activity in the Atlantic off the Outer Hebrides is being proposed as a source of the low-frequency noise afflicting some residents in Lewis.
The Times newspaper yesterday (Monday, April 28) offered military communications and monitoring as a plausible explanation for the noise nuisance.
They reported that Dr Glen MacPherson of the University of British Columbia, director of the World Hum Map and Database Project, has suggested that low-frequency radio waves used to communicate with submerged military submarines could be a potential explanation.
Meanwhile, Lauren-Grace Kirtley, admin of the Hebridean Hum Facebook group, issued an update this morning (Tuesday, April 29) on what their investigation team has established so far. And they are now turning their attention offshore to locate a marine source for the low-frequency racket.
Interestingly, there have also been reports of a humming noise from across the Minch. A reader states: “I have been experiencing this problem for 4 or 5 years now. I hear it all round the waterside from Inchree to Appin on the west coast.
“The noise is amplified within the houses and also intensifies in the small hours of the morning. I also have considered moving from the area due to this, so I am encouraged to hear that there are people trying to get to the bottom of the problem.”
Lauren-Grace Kirtley said: “We’ve made spectrograph recordings at every location on the island where the hum has been reported – please keep adding your locations to the interactive map (pinned).
“There is a persistent, recordable 50 Hz signal of variable strength present in all locations, especially around Stornoway and Broad Bay, but measurable from all over the island.
“We’ve also detected much weaker signals in the island’s interior — suggesting the sound is not being generated from the centre of the island itself.”
Readings have also been taken at various sites, including wind turbines, ports, masts, and infrastructure. The group admin noted: “No clear on-island source has yet been identified.
“We’ve contacted multiple organisations for advice and investigation support, including the Comhairle, DEFRA, Ofcom, the power station, SSEN, and others.”
What has been determined definitively by the group’s investigations is that the persistent 50Hz low-frequency sound is detectable around the island’s coastline.
They have also concluded that no known on-island source exists from existing infrastructure or services, so they are now looking out to sea for a solution. However, this will require further equipment and specialist support.
Last night, one Hebridean Hum Facebook user backed the World Hum Map and Database Project theory, saying a “very plausible explanation” could be the military attempting to detect Russian submarines.
Indeed, the Atlantic off the islands’ west coast has long been a hotspot for Russian submarines. The Russian Navy is known to operate in the area, including submarines, and is monitored by the Royal Navy as activity has increased in recent years.
So, in times of international tension, such as at present, it would not be unreasonable to assume that Russian naval assets may be more active in the area. However, confirmed reports of recent submarine activity and monitoring are understandably difficult to come by.
Meanwhile, the Hebridean Hum is now attracting attention from as far afield as Canada. Yahoo.com picked up on low-frequency noise nuisance for its Canadian news from BBC News. Radio 1’s Newsbeat team is also looking to interview a young person under 30 today about how they are being affected by the humming. Agence France-Presse (AFP) now has a two-person team in Lewis who wish to investigate the noise.
However, the list of possible sources of noise pollution continues to grow almost daily.
What is not in dispute is that whatever is causing the noise is a recent widespread innovation.
This will be little comfort to the hundreds of islanders who are tormented by the mystery hum daily.
This is especially true now that a government advisor reportedly said islanders should seek cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) to help them cope with the noise.
Geoff Leventhall, a noise and vibration expert who has studied similar incidents for more than half a century, has advised people affected by the low-frequency drone to relax and take it in their stride rather than getting stressed.
He said that when he suggested CBT during a constant humming outbreak in a village in County Durham, CBT was shown to help people relax and desensitise themselves to the noise.
However, the suggestion has infuriated Hebridean Hum admin Lauren-Grace Kirtley, a doctor and university lecturer.
She told The Times: “I can guarantee that he would not be saying this if he had heard this noise. It is draining, debilitating and incredibly distressing and disruptive.
“It is like somebody shouting in your face constantly for attention … It is impossible to ignore.”
She asserted that telling people to ‘get used to it’ was an unacceptable solution.
It is unclear what Comhairle nan Eilean Siar are doing. However, they were due to install a noise recording device in a house in Ness yesterday.
(There are updates from readers being added to this article as time passes.)
