The damage to the upper part of the hull is clearly visible on the port side as the 50 Let Pobedy continues to operate along the Northern Sea Route.

Photo: Telegram

Nuclear icebreaker sustained hull damage after collision in the Kara Sea

A video published by the pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Mash shows how the 50 Let Pobedy sails straight into the cargo vessel Yamal Krechet.

Thomas Nilsen

28 January 2025 - 22:32

The dramatic collision happened at 03.51 am on the night to January 26 but did not become known to the public before the press service of Rosatomflot confirmed the facts to several Russian media in the evening of January 28.

Murmansk-based Arctic Observer said in its Telegram channel that the collision happened as the powerful icebreaker was assisting a cargo ship sailing through the ice-covered waters.

According to Rosatomflot, the nuclear powered icebreaker continues to operate in normal mode along the Northern Sea Route, despite the damage to the hull.

Rosatomflot says in the press statement that "seaworthiness has not been lost" and "there were no casualties."

The state owned operator of Russia's icebreaker fleet underlines that the two onboard reactors were not harmed in the collision. The information has not been confirmed by independent sources.

The reactor compartment is in the rear of the icebreaker, while the impact area damaged is in the forward part of the hull.

One of the crew members are looking into the damage to the hull of the icebreaker as she continue to sail.

Rosatomflot does not provide any information about what caused the navigation mistake leading to the huge icebreaker smashing into the smaller cargo ship.

The 50 Let Pobedy is the newest of the older Arktika-class nuclear-powered icebreakers. Construction of the vessel started in the late Soviet era (1989), but she was not commissioned before 2007.

These are the sailing paths of the 50 Let Pobedy and the Yamal Krechet at the time of the collision as the vessels were sailing into the Ob Bay from the Kara Sea.

The icebreaker has Murmansk as homeport, but can operate independently for months at a time during the icy navigation season along the Northern Sea Route.

The cargo vessel Yamal Krechet was according to MarineTraffic.com on her way from Arkhangelsk towards Sabetta, the port where Novatek's Yamal LNG production facilitates are located.

There are no public reports about the possible damages to the cargo vessel. Several tens of containers can be seen on deck of the Yamal Krechet at the time of the collision, but it is not known immediately known what content the cargo includes.