Oil removal from dangerous wartime wreck completed for this year

The removal of fuel from the tanks of the battleship Ilmarinen, which sank during the Continuation War in 1941, has been completed, reports Finnish broadcaster Yle.

The operation, which began in mid-July, removed around 60,000 litres of oil from the wreck. An estimated 40,000 litres of oil remain in the Ilmarinen’s tanks. The plan is to continue draining the wreck next year.

The Ilmarinen sank in the northern Baltic Sea in September 1941 after striking a mine. 271 of those on board perished, whilst 132 survived. It took around 50 years before the ship was located. The oil in its tanks poses a major environmental risk to the Baltic Sea.

The oil removal operation was led by the Finnish Coast Guard and the Finnish Environment Institute. The Border Guard and the Centre for Diving Medicine also took part in the operation.