A boat previously used to ship drugs into Ireland is set to get a major face-lift with the help of youngsters from Limerick's inner city.
The MV Posidonia will be completely overhauled as part of an ambitious project aimed at teaching new skills to teenagers from the St Mary's Park area of the city.
Under the auspices of a Fás youth training scheme, the St Mary's Maritime Project aims to effectively rebuild the vessel over the next two years.
It is hoped that up to 20 early school-leavers from St Mary's parish will get an opportunity to work on the project.
The vessel was seized by Irish customs officers off the coast of Cork in 1999, carrying €17 million of cannabis resin destined for the streets of Limerick.
Following the seizure, the MV Posidonia was donated to Limerick by the Revenue Commissioners.
Now youngsters from one of the city's unemployment blackspots will have a chance to put their energies to use.
The boat was built in Britain in 1947 as a motorised fishing vessel, and spent time as a research ship in the Arctic Circle under the ownership of Cambridge University.
People who have ideas for a new name for the vessel should contact the St Mary's Community Development Project. The name should have associations with Limerick city