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The M/S Estonia was a Baltic Sea ferry, which sank on 28 September 1994 on their way from Tallinn to Stockholm. The fall of the Estonia marks the heaviest ship misfortune of European postwar history with its 852 victims.
The Estonia was built in the year 1980 of threw Jos. L. Meyer in Papenburg (Germany). After employments with the Finnish shipping companies Viking LINE (as Viking Sally), Silja LINE (as Silja star) and Wasa LINE (as Wasa King) became the ferry in October 1992 to a Swedish estnisches joint venture northflows last & Thulin OFF and the Estonian of the Shipping CO. sold and Estonia (latin/English designation of Estonia) received the names. It was at this time the largest and most modern ship under estnischer flag and served from now on the route Stockholm Tallinn in the airline service.
O'clock already put and took the M/S down Estonia in the estnischen port Tallinn course on Stockholm on 27 September 1994 with delay against 19.15. The arrival in Stockholm was planned for the next morning against 9.30 o'clock. The succession of the events at that night could to some extent be reconstructed due to the statements of survivors of the fall.
In heavy lake penetrated sometime after midnight water on the vehicle deck of the Estonia; as this water break-down came, is clarified until today not free of doubts. There are for this different theories, from the penetration of the water by the Bugrampe up to the assumption of a leakage below the Wasserlinie in the trunk of the ship. Subsequently, the ferry got strong impact side and finally sank within a half hour. Only few minutes after the first emergency call at 1.22 o'clock, which by other Finnish ferries in the proximity one caught and one answered, the Funkkontakt tore starting from and at 1.55 o'clock disappeared the Estonia of the radar display screens of the surrounding ships.
Since the misfortune place is in a relatively strongly driven on sea-area, already about one hour was later the Mariella, a ferry of the Viking LINE, at the misfortune place. High waves and above all strong wind obstructed however the rescue measures, so that altogether only 137 humans survived the misfortune. Most passengers erfroren in the cold water of the Baltic Sea and in the icy wind on the rescue rafts or still drowned inside the ferry, because no more time remained for them to the escape in the free. One assumes at least 852 humans lost their life in the Baltic Sea at that night. This number is based however only on assumptions, since there are no exact passenger lists.
The drowned passengers came from many countries: Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Great Britain, Russia, Estonia, Lettland, Litauen, white Russia, Ukraine, Morocco, Canada and Nigeria.
Hans which lost its wife with the Estonia misfortune, established a simple wood cross to a quarter of Stockholm in to the memory of the victims of the misfortune. This wood cross is regarded of many members of the drowning as authentic Estonia memorial place, because it was established to the survivor by one. They visit this wood cross at the anniversaries of the misfortune.
The Estonia memorial place is in Stockholm in behind the bridge at the back of the Vasamuseums Vasamuseet and stands beside the cemetery , which is dedicated to the sailors. It was sketched by the Polish artist Miroslaw Balka (*1958 in Warsaw), realized afterwards in co-operation with landscape architects and inaugurated on 28 September 1997. The way, which along-leads at the Vasamuseums Vasamuseet, serves as entrance.
The national monument represents the nose of a ship, which opens to the sea bay .
In the midst of a triangular gravel surface with in each case 11 m side length stands an old elm tree, whose trunk is closely at the soil enclosed by a metal ring, on which the accurate position of the wreck of the Estonia is engraved. The gravel surface is enclosed by three 2.50 m high granite walls, which release the view of the sea bay . The grey granite walls call the names of nearly all drowning in alphabetical order on the inside. Between the registered names some places remain empty, because the survivors did not permit the name entry. Occasionally bouquets on the soil, which were mourning laid down of, lie.
To the left of the Estonia memorial place a Gedenktafel is in Swedish language at the stairs to the cemetery.
Because of the Estonia memorial place gave it to controversies between the members and the national art advice. The members complained of that the art advice took part them not in the decisions, rejected and the survivors to the inauguration celebration did not invite the draft of a survivor. In these controversies it became clear that the national monument had been established not for the members, but for the Swedish people and for future generations.
Miroslaw Balka had submitted first another draft for the memorial place, with which the names of the drowning on 0.92 m broad and should be registered to scarcely 80 m long white cement way, to that in of a putting on bar of the sea bay to a hill would drive up and the whole year over the human of 37"° C kept should. Above on the hill Miroslaw Balka wanted to place as on a ship deck two chairs beside a ship chimney, from which one could hear the noise of the sea, since the 1.80 m high chimney should be connected by an underground tube with the sea.
This draft was rejected by the members; they would have felt it as indications of the Verachtung, if the visitors of the memorial place would step the names of the drowning with feet, engraved on the narrow way.
Immediately after the fall by official side of the states directly concerned Sweden, Estonia and Finland a commission of inquiry was formed, which should fathom the causes for the fall. The determinations pulled themselves in the year 1997 and the locking result afterwards in an investigation report were published. Apart from this official investigation of the misfortune further independent investigations were made, among other things on the part of that Meyer throwing, which thereby the reproaches of structural defects, raised in the official report, wanted to resist.
Not only Meyer throwing criticized that important evidence under catch was held, so also parts of the photographs, which had been taken by a submarine of the scattered wreck parts at the bottom of the sea. At first the Swedish government wanted to let the entire wreck place of discovery with all wreck parts include into a concrete Sarkophag, what would have prevented any further investigation into all eternity.
The German lady journalist Jutta Rabe investigated again and again in detail since the fall in the year 1994 and the determined facts in a book gathered (see under literature). In addition it produced the motion picture film Baltic Storm, which ran 2003 in the cinema with her company TopStory. This Politthriller refers to a large extent to the test results of Jutta Rabe. Principal purpose of the film was it, the broad public on the fall of the M/S Estonia and its still unsettled background to make attentive.
Initially the news magazine of the mirrors Rabe had supported co-operation with it with their work still, in the year 2001 terminated the magazine then however. Editor-in-chief Stefan Aust explained this officially with the fact that Rabe understands its work rather as personal campaign. Aust had been criticized within the mirror editorship again and again for the fact that he had concentrated alone on Rabes theory.
In the meantime at the end of gave 2004 a retired Swedish customs officer in relation to the media to minutes that before the fall military electronics and weapon parts from the Russian area had been already brought on the Estonia and these transportation could not be controlled. This usual practice occurred repeated and was arranged by higher places. Further discrepancies of the load lists were determined, since two unknown transportation had on board come still briefly before running out the Estonia. Due to the new realizations the investigations at the end of of 2004 were officially again taken up. Among other things the Swedish military admitted that military transportation with civilian ferries were carried. The exit of the investigation is still open.
In March 2005 the Swedish government communicates that a renewed investigation is to be written out by means of computer simulation internationally.
To 10. March 2006 published investigation report of the estnischen prosecutor general confirms doubts about the final report of the official Untersuchungskommision from the year 1997 and gives cause for speculation that a new independent investigation of the misfortune is arranged shortly.
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