A CRUISE ship slipped its moorings at Greenock Ocean Terminal as Storm Ali battered the waterfront.

Nautica was berthed alongside when the drama happened just after 11am.

'Extremely strong' winds parted mooring lines and the vessel broke free and ended up pointing straight against the quay.

The ship has a capacity of over 600 and it's believed some guests were still on board at the time along with crew members while others had already disembarked for the day.

Her owners say no one was injured as a result of the incident.

Tugs were immediately called to the scene to assist and Nautica was led out into the channel to safety.

She remains anchored there and officials hope to bring her back alongside later today.

Her original scheduled depature time was 10pm for Belfast.

Oceania Cruises issued a statement saying: "This afternoon, while alongside at the port of Greenock, Scotland, Nautica encountered extremely strong winds which resulted in the parting of mooring lines and the vessel being detached from the dock.

"All guests and crew on board are safe and there were no injuries.

"Tugs have been called in to assist and the vessel is currently being held off of her berth.

"A total of 478 guests and 26 crew are ashore and are being looked after by the shore operations teams until conditions are safe enough for the vessel to be returned to the passenger terminal."