#GhostShip - The saga of the 'ghost ship' MV Lyubov Orlova may finally be at an end, with word that the "rat-ridden" former polar cruise liner has "vanished from the high seas", according to the Irish Independent.
Earlier this year, as reported on Afloat.ie, the Irish Coast Guard was put on alert after indications that the ship - which broke free from its tow line wile being transported from Canada to the Caribbean for scrapping - was adrift in the Atlantic some 2,400km off the West of Ireland.
With no working transponders on the vessel, and no visual confirmation, it was thought weeks later that the Lyubov Orlova may have sunk as it drifted towards Europe.
And later it was suggested that it could be resting at the bottom of the ocean leaking hazardous waste into the delicate deep sea environment - though it's now believed the ship did not carry enough oil to cause a problem.
Even so, there is a chance that the vessel may still be adrift, somehow avoiding detection by passing sea traffic or aircraft, and its cargo of shipborne rats would be considered a biohazard if it reached our shores, according to the Irish Coast Guard chief.
"We don't want rats from foreign ships coming onto Irish soil," said Chris Reynolds. "If it came and broke up on shore, I'm sure local people wouldn't be very happy about it."
The Lyubov Orlova - named after a famous Russian film star - is the sister ship of the polar cruiser Clipper Adventurer, the first cruise liner to visit Drogheda Port.
