Tributes have been paid to an offshore worker who suddenly collapsed and died while working in the North Sea.

William Nichol, 61, took ill on Tuesday while on a floating production storage and offloading vessel, located around 115 miles east of Aberdeen.

The married father-of-two, who worked for IKM Testing UK Ltd, passed away despite the best efforts of the medical crew on board the Shell operated Anasuria.

Shell's emergency response team were alerted that Mr Nichol had collapsed around 4pm.

He is survived by his wife Ann (CORR) and sons Chris and Simon, who are understood to be from the Middlesbrough area.

Shell UK & Ireland's upstream director Paul Goodfellow said: "I wish to express my sympathy to the family, friends and colleagues of William Nichol, who sadly passed away on our Anasuria platform, in the central North Sea, on Tuesday evening.

"We are working closely with Mr Nichol's employer, IKM Testing, to provide support to his family and colleagues during this difficult time."

Tony Perkin, managing director of IKM added: "Mr Nichol was a dedicated and valued member of the team and will be sadly missed."

Police Scotland sent a representative to the floating tanker-like production facility, which sits between the Teal and Guillemot fields after being informed of the tragic death.