Estonian icebreakers free over 50 ships from ice-bound Baltic Sea coastline
Estonia's icebreakers have freed over 50 vessels from the pack ice hemming in Estonia's coastlines and shipping lanes since the start of the year.
Two state-operated vessels, the Botnica and the Eva, are at work in the Gulf of Riga and the area around Pärnu, as well as the bulk of Estonia's islands; another ship, the 60-year-old Tarmo, is heading to Muuga Bay, just east of Tallinn, on the Gulf of Finland.
The Tarmo will set out late tonight, Tuesday, as the first icebreaking orders must be fulfilled by noon Wednesday, "Aktuaalne kaamera" reported.
Icebreaking around the Port of Pärnu and on the Gulf of Riga, the bulk of whose coastline lies in Latvian territory, already began early last month.
Ice conditions in the Gulf of Riga forced all shipping traffic destined for Riga, Latvia's capital, to pass through Estonian waters around the island of Ruhnu Island on Monday.
The Latvians have one icebreaker at work too, which, like the Tarmo, is an old vessel.
"The Latvians have only one icebreaker, Varma, which is the sister ship of our icebreaker Tarmo. According to our current optimal plans, the Tarmo's service life will last until 2028. To do that, we must develop further plans for what will happen next, when the Tarmo retires with dignity," Andres Laasma, Director General of the State Fleet (Riigilaevastik) told "Aktuaalne kaamera."
Of the over 50 vessels got moving again by the icebreakers, the bulk of them, 45, were in the seas around Pärnu, with less than 20 requiring assistance in the less enclosed Gulf of Finland.
As to the country which gives the gulf its name, ice conditions are even more severe for Estonia's neighbor to the north, Laasma said, meaning their icebreakers are busy in territorial waters.
Laasma said while conditions like those seen since the start of the year are not unprecedented, they are around a once-in-a-seven-year occurrence.
"The last very severe winter was in 2011, when all the icebreakers were out operating. In 2018, there was also a winter when the Tarmo carried out icebreaking. And 2025 [sic] as well, so the seven-year cycle works perfectly," Laasma said.
The arrival of milder temperatures does not mean the icebreakers' work is over: On the contrary, their work can be even more needed, depending on, for instance, wind direction and speeds.
"The most difficult ice conditions arise some time in the spring. At the end of March 2011, 120 vessels were trapped in the ice all at the same time. The prevailing winds are westerlies, and these blow the ice here, eastward, creating ridged ice," Aare Piel, icebreaking coordinator at the Transport Administration (Transpordiamet) said.
As for the cost of the work, icebreaking comes with about an €8-million price tag per year, regardless of winter conditions, as this includes maintaining the icebreakers and keeping them ready for operation at the quayside.
The Gulf of Finland has an average depth of 35 meters, compared with an average of 26 meters for the Gulf of Riga. In the adjacent Väinameri, an almost enclosed sea between Estonia's major islands, water depths can be as shallow as 5 meters, and the arrival of the ice has wrought havoc with ferry transport and supplies there, causing some to temporarily run aground.
This winter, a blocking high-pressure zone has forced sea levels down in the Baltic Sea more broadly, with the excess water exiting into the North Sea, in addition to pack ice causing problems for ships' navigation.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Marko Tooming
Source: 'Aktuaalna kaamera'
