A FOURTH controversial US ghost ship arrived on Teesside yesterday - but was unable to dock because of the weather.

Poor daylight forced the Compass Island to be towed several miles offshore, where it will stay until it can be brought in on a good tide on Tuesday morning.

The 14,500-ton former cargo vessel will join her sister ships, the Caloosahatchee, the Canisteo, and the Canopus at the Able UK yard on the outskirts of Hartlepool.

All four will be held at the yard throughout the winter, but whether work to dismantle them will go ahead hinges on a High Court hearing early next month.

The arrival of the first two ships a fortnight ago was met with protests by groups who claim they are an environmental hazard, carrying asbestos and dangerous chemicals, and should not have been allowed over from America.

Protestors stayed away on Thursday when the third ship arrived, saying they had already made their feelings known and were now waiting for the outcome of legal challenges.

Able UK won an £11m contract to dismantle and recycle 13 vessels from the outdated US fleet sitting in the James River, in Virginia.

After furious protests and legal challenges to the work going ahead, a judicial review is scheduled for the High Court, in London, on Monday, December 8, which will determine whether the ships can be recycled in Britain or have to be returned to America.

The other nine will remain in Virginia until at least next spring, pending legal challenges there.

Able UK boss Peter Stephenson welcomed the arrival of the ships and said he remained confident that the courts would rule that the work should be carried out on Teesside and create 200 jobs.

Mr Stephenson, who believes many people have been misled by campaign groups about the safety of the ships, said: ''When people know the truth about these vessels, they will realise there's nothing at all to be worried about.

''I am confident that the work will eventually go ahead here and people should actually be proud of the fact that we secured the contract from America.''

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