OMG the fossil fuel leak...could have been under us!
A pipeline leak of highly explosive natural gas is a phenomenon we've never experienced before up here in the Baltics. Looking at the maps of where the leaks are happening right now, made it interesting to see if we would have been close to them – if the leak happened on July 11.
OMG, we would have been more or less on top of it! A new reason to not use a burner when cooking onboard – in the case a pipeline may start leaking under you. Who initiated the explosion? Time will tell.
Our route (in red) from Kristianopel on the Swedish mainland...sailing down to Christiansø. We had to tack when getting closer to the island as the wind shifted. Possibly we were, or could have been, sailing right on top of the pipeline...
They don't look very friendly. The gas leak at Nord Stream 2 as seen from a Danish F-16 interceptor on Bornholm, Denmark, Sept. 27, 2022. (Photo: Danish Defence Command via Reuters)
This is an image from right about that leaking area...on July 11th. We started early morning and finally spotted the goal for the day – Christiansø. You can see it above – the land strip up in the right-hand corner, just southwest of us.
I have never had this thought in mind, and would never think it could be a reality: "– Oh my goodness, we made it to the harbor and didn't blow up from a sudden natural gas pipeline explosion underneath us on the way over." See the blog post from our Christiansø stop-over.
October 19, 2022: First footage of the damaged pipeline here
PS. People are raving about the environmental disaster this gas leakage creates, comparing it to the equivalent amount of damage other sources create – in tons of CO2 per year in Scandinavia, etc. But the damage was created that very moment the gas was pumped up from down under in the first place. We - the humans - would have created damage when using it anyway. We have to stop pumping up fossil fuels. We have to stop using fossil fuels. That is how we can avoid environmental damage. We will get there. Hopefully, soon enough.
