What We Know About The Real Life Ghost Ships That Are Sailing The World Without Crews

Much less scary than other possible ghostly marine legends is that some ships simply wind up free sailing due to mechanical or technical difficulties. This is what happened to a 250-foot-long cargo carrier, the MV Alta. The massive, 2,400-ton ship lost power while sailing from Greece to Haiti in 2018. According to Surfline, the vessel lost power around 1,300 miles from the destination, and while the repair efforts went on for weeks, they were unsuccessful.

Eventually, the crew's efforts were forced to come to a complete halt when a hurricane posed a threat to their safety. They were evacuated, and the MV Alta left behind for good. A British Royal Navy ice patrol boat saw the MV Alta once more in 2019 in the mid-north Atlantic before the ship was spotted by a jogger five months later at its final resting place, when it ran ashore on Ireland's southern coast.

Fortunately, the MV Alta's fate seems to be a rare case when it comes to technical difficulties. But power troubles aren't the only reason so many ships sail the seas with little to no crew left aboard.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qL7Up56eZpOkunB9j2lpaWlmZMSprdNmrp5lm6O8uHnAm6aurF2ptaZ50Z6YpWWcnrOmecahpqysXai1qrzSZquhmaRirrOxjKyYoqSZo7RuwMeeZLCnoqGxbsPIrZ%2BoraRisLOx1qxm