On the Cork coast a marine leisure company has been blown away by the demand from sightseers to catch a glimpse of the ghost ship which ran ashore six months ago, while there are now renewed calls for authorities to deal with the wreck, writes Irish Examiner.
The MV Alta washed ashore on the East Cork coast during a storm almost six months ago.
Ballycotton Sea Adventures said they have been blown away by the demand for tours to view the MV Alta.
The firm’s general manager, skipper Alan Cott, said six trips to the wreck last Monday were sold out within minutes of being advertised.
“There is a fascination about this wreck and people do want to see it,” he said.
“We had hundreds of people coming down here when it first washed ashore back in February, with people traipsing along the cliff walk, some not really sure where they were going or what they were doing, and it can be a dangerous place, especially with crowds.
“Things obviously quietened down during lockdown and while we have lost our international visitors, we’re getting a lot of domestic visitors at the moment and people do want to see the wreck so we decided why not offer something that would allow people to view it in a safe manner.
“And the demand has been incredible, to be honest, way above what we expected.”
Members of Mr Cott's team were amongst the first to spot the drifting freighter after it was washed onto the rocks on February 15 as Storm Dennis battered the country.
It later emerged that the 80-metre, 44-year-old cargo vessel had been abandoned by her 10-strong crew during a storm some 16-months earlier near Bermuda, and that after they were rescued by the US coast guard, the ship was left adrift in the Atlantic.
It remained lost at sea until it was spotted last September by the Royal Navy in the mid-Atlantic, before it was washed onto the Cork coast.
For much more on the coastal visitor attraction click here.
Afloat adds the freighter in February had oil drums removed by Cork County Council to avoid potential pullution from the wreck near Ballycotton Harbour.
In the following month international salvage experts said it would coast €10m to remove the wreck, however the Receiver of Wrecks was then trying to establish the owners of the abandoned cargoship.
