Shortly after 12:10 p.m. on Sunday, a technical failure struck patrol boat M-32, which was on duty on the Narva River at Narva-Jõesuu. This caused the vessel with its three-member crew to drift into Russian waters. After about 15 minutes, the crew maneuvered the boat back into Estonian waters, a statement from the PPA said.

Silver Pälsing, operational commander of the Ida Prefecture, said the problem arose due to the technical malfunction and stormy weather. He said the crew was on a routine patrol.

"Even an anchor deployed into the water could not withstand the strong wind, and the boat drifted to the Russian side of the Narva River. We dispatched additional forces to bring the boat and crew back, and at the same time informed the border guard of the Russian Federation of the incident," Pälsing said.

The three-member crew also worked to identify the possible malfunction and attempted to restore control of the vessel.

"The crew managed to partially resolve the malfunction and maneuver back into Estonian waters. Another PPA boat crew went to assist them and towed the vessel to port," Pälsing added.

All members of the crew are safe. The farthest point from the border that the boat may have reached in Russian waters was up to 70 meters.

Border violations on the Narva River became a particularly sensitive issue after Russia removed 24 border buoys installed by Estonian border guards in May 2024, claiming they were located in Russian waters.

Since Russia did not return the buoys and refused to agree on the river's midline, Estonia decided last spring to forgo reinstalling the border markers, which has led to an increase in accidental border crossings on the river.

In December, three suspected Russian border guards briefly crossed the border between the two countries on the Narva River near Vasknarva.

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