Long Beach, California may be on the hook for a Russian submarine.

Officials say the outer skin of the 1970s-era Foxtrot-class vessel has been deteriorating for some time, its once sleek profile disfigured by holes, rust and protective netting. Saltwater and the occasional severe storm have not been kind.

How did the sub get here?

Commissioned by the Soviet government in 1971, the Scorpion spent its working life searching for and tracking enemy forces in the Pacific before it was decommissioned in 1994. After a three-year stint at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney, it was bought by Palm Springs resident Ed Skowron and towed to Long Beach as a tourist attraction in 1998.

For years, it drew about 8,000 visitors a month, its own lure alongside the Queen Mary.