On Wednesday and Thursday, the artillery regiment's Caesar and HIMARS batteries held training at the Nursipalu Training Area, with reservists invited to practice tactical artillery maneuvers. While HIMARS fired rockets without warheads, the Caesar guns used 155-millimeter live rounds, producing noise levels similar to the K9 howitzers.

"Although our artillerymen would love to fire a lot more, we are limited by the amount of ammunition available. Today we will fire 26 rounds of 155 mm shells and yesterday we were able to fire 28," said Col. Marko Tomentšuk, commander of the artillery regiment.

The self-propelled howitzer training took place in the already expanded part of Nursipalu. During the exercise, the Estonian Center for Defense Investments (RKIK) also measured the noise levels.

"This way, we can be certain of how much artillery fire actually generates noise in this area and how much it impacts the environment," Tomentšuk explained.

"Once we have the noise measurement results, we'll compare them with previous modeling data and present them to the public," said Elari Kalmaru, who manages the training area portfolio at RKIK.

Sõmerpalu kindergarten is located about two kilometers from the training area. Thursday's firing could be heard there as well.

"You can definitely hear the sounds and the bangs are loud, but our children are used to it. From the very beginning, teachers have explained where the noise comes from and nothing unusual has been heard this time either. Inside the building, it's not audible at all," said Sõmerpalu kindergarten teacher Grete Vares.

Mare, who lives in Kubija on the edge of Võru, spent half the day working outdoors on Thursday. The sounds from Nursipalu reached her, too.

"I haven't heard such big blasts before. It doesn't bother me. I guess I've gotten used to it and I'm glad the training is happening and that our defense is being looked after," Mare said.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and X and never miss an update!