Societal preparedness for oil spills at sea in winter conditions lies at the heart of safety investigation

The Safety In­ves­ti­ga­tion Au­thor­ity, Fin­land launches a safety in­ves­ti­ga­tion into a ma­rine ac­ci­dent in which the Jääsalo tug re­leased ap­prox­i­mately 10 m³ of light fuel oil into the Kemi Ajos har­bour basin on 12 Feb­ru­ary 2024.

“This accident also received a lot of media attention. It should be pointed out right from the get-go that this is not a catastrophic oil spill, but it is classified as a significant spill under the EU directive. The safety investigation is launched in part due to international regulations. We have received a lot of information from other authorities, which has enabled us to investigate the incident thoroughly,” says Ilkka Kervinen, Investigator in Charge.

“In the investigation, we will focus especially on investigating the chain of events resulting in the oil spill, response measures and cooperation practices between the authorities, as well as on the activities of regulatory and supervisory authorities,” Kervinen adds.

“In many ways, the Baltic Sea is an exceptional marine area, and oil spill response is difficult, especially in winter conditions. In practice, the only countries with experience in this area with these particular variables are Sweden and us here in Finland. This investigation provides an opportunity to explore experiences of response measures and their effectiveness. Once the investigation is completed, we will issue safety recommendations. Anticipation and development of preparedness help us prepare for and prevent these kinds of accidents,” says Kervinen.

The purpose of the safety investigation is to improve public safety and prevent new accidents and incidents. Matters of guilt and liability will not be addressed in the investigation.

The duration of the safety investigation is approximately 9 to 12 months.