Island Ferry Takes 12 Hours to Cover 9 Miles
Ferry traffic between the islands of Hiiumaa and Saaremaa slowed to a near standstill on December 26 when the ferry departing from Hiiumaa at 8:15 reached its destination at 20:30, having taken 12 hours to grind through the 17-kilometre frozen channel.
The ferry was carrying 20 passengers and eight vehicles. According to Captain Viktor Rohtla, conditions often make icy waterways as impassable as snow-choked higways on solid ground. The wind creates thick snowdrifts across the channel, which freeze in multiple layers, becoming very difficult to break.
On December 27, with the waterway cleared, the same trip took 1.5 hours. The operators of the line have received permission from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications to add extra trips to the timetable and thereby keep the waterway free under the difficult ice conditions.