In 2014, ship with 32M illegal cigarettes was sunk off Ireland; 12 years later, marine life has colonised the wreck

No matter the oceans it crosses, a ship always finds a home at sea. One such vessel is the 197-foot MV Shingle, a ship that was intercepted for carrying 32 million illegal cigarettes while travelling from Slovenia toward Drogheda, Ireland, according to RTÉ. Now, 12 years later, the ship has found a second life at the bottom of the sea where it has become the abode of numerous creatures.Following legal proceedings, the Moldovan-registered Shingle was taken under control by Irish authorities who initially hoped to sell it. But the vessel contained rust and asbestos, and scrapping it was deemed too expensive. Instead, the Shingle remained tied up at Dublin Port for roughly nine years.Berthing fees and remedial work ultimately cost more than €2 million, approximately $2.24 million based on current exchange rates, before the vessel was eventually prepared for a completely different fate. In 2024, the ship was cleaned in accordance with regulations and deliberately sunk about 2.5 miles offshore in Killala Bay on Ireland's northwest coast. Now, the vessel sits 98 feet beneath the surface, where marine life is beginning to take over it, creating an artificial reef and new diving attraction...