It often takes a major catastrophe to initiate radical reforms and improvements. For the maritime sector, this occurred after the Estonia disaster, when comprehensive maritime traffic safety work was launched in Finland.
When the cruise ferry MS Estonia sank on 28 September 1994 in high seas in the Northern Baltic Sea, the conditions were demanding even for an experienced seafarer: wind speeds were around 20 m/sec. and the average wave height in the Baltic Sea was around six metres.
There has been a lot of speculation subsequently on what caused the Estonia to sink. This kind of an incident was completely unexpected. Before the seriousness of the situation became clear, many critical seconds and minutes had been lost.
“Certainly the accident was a tragic one and, to this date, lives on clearly in the memories of many, but we should also keep in mind all the positive things that the maritime SAR and national maritime authorities have achieved after the accident,” states Sea Captain Thomas Erlund, head of the Finnish Transport Agency’s Vessel Traffic Services unit.
The Maritime Safety Programme was started in 1995
In the autumn of 1995, the Government made a decision-in-principle based on the proposal by the working group established after the Estonia disaster of a programme with the objective of improving maritime safety.
The Ministries of Transport, the Interior, the Environment, and the Education were assigned the responsibility for the realisation and monitoring of the decision-in-principle. Funding for the Ministry of Transport’s administrative branch was increased, and a decision was made to implement a marine traffic control and monitoring system (Vessel Traffic Service, VTS) on the coast of Finland. Today, three VTS centres known as Vessel Traffic Centres and maintained by the Finnish Transport Agency operate in Finland.
There has been and will continue to be a drive to improve maritime safety, so it is of primary importance that memories such as Estonia are never forgotten.
“Tragic events will always upset people, but we should also be able to learn from them and steer towards a new, safer course,” emphasises Thomas Erlund.