Russian ghost ship could beach in Norway

barents_sea_mapNorwegian authorities believe that the Russian ghost ship Lyubov Orlova could wash up on their shores as the ship is now drifting across the North Atlantic.

The Yugoslavia-built cruise ship made headlines a month ago when after being tied up in Newfoundland for two years, the vessel went derelict as it was being towed to the Dominican Republic to be scrapped. The crew of the tugboat unsuccessfully tried to reconnect the rope in the midst of a winter storm. Canadian authorities abandoned attempts to regain control of the ship after it drifted into international waters.

Norwegian scientist Jon Albertsen believes that if the ship, which was last spotted some 2400 km from Ireland, were to drift between the Faroe Islands and the Shetlands, strong currents could push it towards Norway.

For similar reasons, Icelandic authorities do not exclude the possibility that the ghost vessel might end up in its territorial waters.