The Baltic at the end of September 1994 was particularly turbulent. A stormy wind was blowing, the speed of which reached 20 meters per second, waves of up to 6 meters in height ran ashore, preventing small and medium-sized vessels from mooring. The weather report, meanwhile, did not promise an improvement in the weather. The wind was getting stronger, the water temperature did not exceed ten degrees.
And even such a powerful ferry as the "Estonia", as high as a six-story building, designed for 2000 passengers, felt a noticeable resistance of waves. He left Tallinn port on September 28 for another voyage to the Swedish capital Stockholm. The thickening fog obstructed visibility. But navigating in bad weather and high waves is the concern of the captain and crew of the ship. Passengers (there were 1,026 people), who were in warm and cozy cabins, restaurants and bars, did not pay attention to the wind and waves. Some were still dancing and drinking, others (and there were the overwhelming majority of them) getting ready for bed: the time was approaching midnight.
The ferry, which made flights to Stockholm three times a week, did not slow down even with such a high wave, which was this time in the Baltic. And now he was walking at a speed of about 30 knots per hour.
The hull of the "Estonia" was shaking slightly, the removable bow of the ferry, held in place by powerful locks, was under tremendous pressure. In two special holds, located at the waterline level, there were cars. The maximum capacity of the ferry is approximately 460 cars or 52 trucks. When parked, they usually enter the holds through the raised bow. It is very convenient: I arrived at the port in my car, loaded it onto the ferry, and myself moved into a comfortable cabin. The next day after arriving at the port of destination, get into your car and drive further in the direction you need.
About 4,500 vessels of this type are currently in use in the world. True, they all suffer from one common flaw - weak stability. High sides, superstructures where passengers are located in the cabins, and huge (two or three decks) empty holds, which are mostly filled with cars. They, of course, must be thoroughly fastened, because if in the holds, God forbid, the cars move, this can lead to very tragic consequences.
During the operation of ships of this class, twelve have suffered disasters precisely because of the shift in the center of gravity. This is a very high figure. In 1987, in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, the Herald of Free Enterprise capsized. The icy water then killed 134 people on a one-day pleasure trip. A few years later, in the North Sea near the German island of Rügen, the ferry "Jan Hevelius" fell on its side. Both overturned ships had problems with loading doors. Sea water penetrated through loosely closed locks and flooded the loading decks. Cars, having fallen off the mountings, rolled onto one side, created a list and led to overturning.
"Estonia" was built in 1980 at the German shipyard "Mayer Werft" in the city of Papenburg. The vessel met all international standards. To improve seaworthiness, it was updated more than once, even hydrofoils were attached. Then "Estonia" was equipped with the latest automation and electronics, satellite communication devices. The team was hired strictly by competition, and the crew was headed by a captain with 25 years of sea experience - Arvo Andersen.
This time there were 30 trucks, 2 buses and cars in the holds of the Estonian. A few hours remained before the ferry arrived in Stockholm. Just enough to have time to sleep and put yourself in order in the morning. On the upper deck in the bar, music thundered, girls from the ballet ensemble dressed in bright masquerade costumes performed their dance program, men and women sat at tables drinking champagne.
Promotional video:
But the pitching became stronger and stronger, the ferry was thrown from wave to wave with some incredible roar. The girls from the variety show lost their balance, fell to the floor, and the musicians could barely hold onto their chairs. At about twelve o'clock in the morning, having apologized to the audience, the musicians decided to end the performance. Spectators and artists were already leaving the hall, dreaming of sleep and rest before arriving at the port.
But nine hundred people - passengers and crew members - never made it to Stockholm. They did not return to Tallinn either. On that September night, the ferry "Estonia" became an iron tomb for them, taking them to a depth of 90 meters.
It all happened very quickly. The audience was still climbing to the upper deck to their cabins, when from the strongest waves, apparently, the attachments of the bow - the most vulnerable part of the ferry, experiencing the greatest stress, could not withstand. A bank has formed. Apparently, the gap in the bow had already existed and water was entering the hold through it. Its level gradually increased and reached 50 centimeters, which exceeded all permissible norms. It was the water that penetrated into the hold that began to create that very dangerous lurch. Poorly fixed cars and some trucks that were not fixed at all, from excessive rolling, moved from their place and "floated". Rolling to the other side, they obviously added a roll. A few minutes later, the roll was approaching 30 degrees, and soon the bow of the ferry was completely ripped off and the ice-cold water poured into the hold.
Experienced captain Arvo Andersen hoped to straighten the ship. He gave the command not to slow down, and the “Estonia” dug its nose into the water even more. Four turbines with a total capacity of almost 6,000 horsepower continued to push the vessel forward, and the water instantly filled all the cargo decks.
The roll increased very quickly. Soon, water entered the engine room, after a few minutes the engines stopped, and then the emergency lighting was turned off. Complete darkness fell. The huge ship swayed in the waves like a light sliver. In these conditions, there was only one thing left - to give an SOS signal and save people.
At 00 hours 24 minutes the branch of the Finnish shipping company on the island of Ute, located 100 kilometers from the city of Turku, unexpectedly received an alarming call sign: “We endure a disaster! Help!”,“We're flooding!”. The Estonian ferry, which was transmitting SOS signals, reported that all of its vehicles had unexpectedly failed and the power supply had been cut off. This meant that the ship lost all ability to resist waves and became their prey. How long could it survive on the surface with a wave six meters high?
The distance to the crash site was approximately 35 kilometers. Night, storm at sea … Where to send rescue ships? How to get to the rescue faster? And nevertheless, the Finns immediately organized a rescue: the coast guard ships went to sea, helicopters were raised into the sky. All ships that were at sea at that time were notified. A headquarters was set up in Turku to receive the rescued.
The ships and helicopters that arrived at the place of the loss of the ferry were able to pick up only 139 people and 42 numb corpses.
For several days and nights, twelve ships and five helicopters surveyed the area in the hope of finding some more survivors. The ferry sank at a depth of about 90 meters, and no one else was found in the waves. The divers, having carefully examined the severed bow of the ferry, suggested raising it to the surface. The Estonian captains also agreed with this.
On November 18, 1994, the Finnish icebreaker "Nordika" managed to lift the severed bow of the ferry "Estonia" from the bottom. A group of experts began to study it. They immediately discovered that both parts - the bow and the hull - were jammed, as a result of which the main lock (which is called the Atlantic) was non-functional. But if the captain had not given the order to move at full speed, thereby leaving the waves to complete their destructive work to the end, then many more people could have been saved - almost everyone. Indeed, according to all technical characteristics, this ship in the event of an accident could remain afloat for five to six hours. And just the beginning of the roll, became destructive for him.
From the book: "HUNDRED GREAT DISASTERS". N. A. Ionina, M. N. Kubeev
