The sunken ship in Mangalsala
During the Soviet era, the concrete cargo ship Lady Cotlin crashed here in the military zone, the remains of which can still be seen at sea near the shore. Various myths are still associated with this.
In 1951, during a storm off the coast of Mangalsala, the Swedish-flagged Lady Cotlin with a Norwegian crew ran aground. Mangalsala already had not only Soviet border guards at that time, but also coast defense cannons, a shooting range, ammunition depots and other troops. Thus, a ship of a capitalist state crashes at a military object and its sailors get into a place inaccessible to foreigners, a military base. The locals said that the whole shore was filled with border guards and cars, they caught and escorted foreign sailors. There was a deep panic. The locals also remember that the sailors were drunk - maybe that's why the ship did not succeed in entering the mouth of the Daugava. Probably, this is why it is believed that the ship carried not only a salt cargo, but also smuggled alcohol. A little later, there was a version that the ship deliberately crashed to get insurance money. There is no information on the further fate of the ship's crew and captain.
The remains of a concrete ship can still be seen about a kilometer east of the pier on the right bank of the Daugava near the shore.
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There is more information for this event, quite fresh, from the daughter of a participant of the event, if you are interested... I have links from Norwegian sources.
Related objects
Mangaļsala fortifications
Coastal fortifications are located in Riga, Mangaļsala, at the mouth of the Daugava across from Daugavgrīva. Fortifications built by different armies (Russian, Latvian, German and Soviet) can be seen here. The fortifications of Mangaļsala were built to defend the city of Riga from hostile navies. This area was strategically important for a long period of time. After World War I the Latvian Army did not yet have a strong navy. The maritime border was long and coastal defence was becoming an increasingly difficult task. The Latvian Army took over the fortifications built by the Russian Empire in the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century and expanded the defence system. The artillery of Daugavgrīva and Mangaļsala would open fire on enemy ships trying to enter the mouth of Daugava, while support points at the mouth of Lielupe (Jūrmala) and mouth of Gauja (Carnikava) would stop enemy landing parties. There was also a specially equipped armoured coastal defence train that could provide artillery fire and support in the direction of Saulkrasti or Jūrmala. The aim of fortifying strategic sites was to maximise the use of weapons through special constructions and terrain advantages. Coastal defence fortifications were spread out over a large area to counter enemy efforts in the event of war.
Audio guide https://izi.travel/en/edbf-mangalsala-fortifications/en
I am researching concrete ships on behalf of the maritime museum of Porsgrunn, Norway - where we still have one afloat and in pretty goood shape, and I have noticed there are some incorrect facts regarding your wreck off Mangalsalas.
Read my story here https://militaryheritagetourism.info/lv/military/stories/view/278