Spooky images as unclaimed Soviet ghost ship drifts unmanned into Irish waters

Cruise ship set adrift twice and lost in international waters relocated one month on

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The Russian cruise ship, MV Lyubov Orlova, was found drifting 1,300 nautical miles off the coast of Ireland, with no crew or warning

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The Russian cruise ship, MV Lyubov Orlova, was found drifting 1,300 nautical miles off the coast of Ireland, with no crew or warning lights, a month after it broke its cable and set adrift into international waters.

Once used for polar cruises and expeditions by the Soviet Union the ship was being towed from Canada to a scrapyard in the Caribbean when the two cables snapped and it floated away.

The Canadian authorities said the ship was not pursued as there were no people on board and there was concern for the safety of the Canadian sailors who might have attempted to salvage the ship due to the weather and dangerous sea conditions.

On February 1st, the ship was intercepted by the Atlantic Hawk, a supply craft used by the Canadian energy firm Husky Energy. However it was cut loose again when it was feared the ships might collide.

When the ship set adrift again the Transport Canada said the massive vessel no longer posed a threat to “the safety of offshore oil installations, their personnel or the marine environment.

“The vessel has drifted into international waters and given current patterns and predominant winds, it is very unlikely that the vessel will re-enter waters under Canadian jurisdiction.”

However, Earlier this week the maritime officials admitted they did not know where the ship was as its global positioning system (GPS) was no longer working.

The AFP news found a document from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency on Thursday stating that they had discovered the ship off the coast of Ireland.

The Irish sailing magazine Afloat reported that the ship had been carried by the Atlantic currents towards Europe.

The ship was built in 1976 by the Russian-based Far East Shipping Company. She was retired at a dockside in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

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