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“It’s a Really Big Hole” Update: Sabotage Suspected in Nord Stream 1 and 2 Leaks; Sweden Detected Possible Explosions at Locations of Leaks of 2.3 and 1.9 on Richter Scale

September 27, 2022
Kristinn Taylor

Three leaks on Russia’s Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea on Monday are suspected as sabotage according to U.S. and European leaders and analysts. Sweden reported detecting explosions early Monday morning and Monday evening, with the morning one registering 1.9 on the Richter scale and the evening explosion 2.3.

The Danish military released photos and video of the gas leaks bubbling up in the Baltic Sea:

The pipelines are protected by a layer of steel-reinforced concrete reported the Guardian:

“The steel pipe itself has a wall of 4.1 cm (1.6 inches) and is coated with steel-reinforced concrete up to 11cm thick. Each section of the pipe weighs 11 tonnes, which goes to 24-25 tonnes after the concrete is applied.”

Sweden’s SVT reported (excerpt via translation):

“Swedish measuring stations registered two clear explosions in the area on Monday. One had a magnitude of 2.3 and was measured at 30 stations. – There is no doubt that it was an explosion, says seismologist Björn Lund to SVT Nyheter. The explosions were recorded at 2:03 a.m. and at 7:04 p.m. on Monday.”

Bloomberg added:

Two powerful underwater explosions were detected on Monday in the same area of sea as the Nord Stream gas leaks, according to the Swedish National Seismic Network.

The monitoring network said the first explosion occurred on Monday at 2:03 a.m. Swedish time with a magnitude of 1.9 on the Richter scale, followed by a second at 7:04 p.m. on the same day with a magnitude of 2.3.

“It’s clear that there has been some kind of explosions, and the coordinates match the leaks,” Peter Schmidt, a seismologist who works with the group, said by phone.

German seismograph reading shows explosions followed by “hissing”:

The Danish news site Berlingske reported (excerpt via translation):

Huge gas leak worries the authorities: “This is not a small crack. It’s a really big hole”

“We are concerned about what has happened out there. And if there are other things on the way,’ says the director of the Danish Energy Agency, which has increased the Danish preparedness on top of the leaks from the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. It is currently too dangerous to see the damage – but they are large, he states.

More from the Guardian on leaders and analysts suspecting sabotage:

A seismologist quoted by Swedish television suggested the activity may have been the result of explosions. Björn Lund, director of the Swedish National Seismic Network, SNSN, which measures Swedish earthquakes and explosions, told the SVT television channel that the event – one of which registered a magnitude of 2.3 – may have been caused by an undersea detonations.

“You can clearly see how the waves bounce from the bottom to the surface. There is no doubt that it was a blast. We even had a station in Gnosjö that picked this up,” said Lund, who also lectures in seismology at Uppsala University.

Earlier, the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said sabotage could not be excluded.

Meanwhile the Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, called the news “very concerning” and said that “no option can be ruled out right now”, including sabotage.

Among those pointing to the war in Ukraine was the Polish prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, who was speaking at the opening of a a new gas pipeline between Norway and Poland. “Today we faced an act of sabotage. We don’t know all the details of what happened but we see clearly that it’s an act of sabotage, related to the next step of escalation of the situation in Ukraine,” Morawiecki said.

Poland’s foreign minister was more forthright, suggesting that the damage could be an act of provocation on behalf of the Kremlin.

“Sadly our eastern partner is constantly pursuing an aggressive political course,” the deputy foreign minister, Marcin Przydacz, said in Warsaw. “If it is capable of an aggressive military course in Ukraine, then it’s apparent that acts of provocations in western Europe also cannot be ruled out.”

Bloomberg reported Germany also suspects sabotage:

Germany suspects the Nord Stream gas pipeline system was damaged by an act of sabotage, in what would amount to a major escalation in the standoff between Russia and Europe.

According to a German security official, the evidence points to a violent act rather than a technical issue. Swedish seismologists detected two explosions in the area on Monday, when leaks appeared almost simultaneously in the Baltic Sea.

Reuters reported U.S Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised sabotage at a D.C. press conference Tuesday:

“There are initial reports indicating that this may be the result of an attack or some kind of sabotage, but these are initial reports and we haven’t confirmed that yet,” Blinken said at a press conference alongside India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. “But if it is confirmed, that’s clearly in no one’s interest.”

Last February Joe Biden threatened to “end” Nord Stream, “Pres. Biden: “If Russia invades…then there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it.” Reporter: “But how will you do that, exactly, since…the project is in Germany’s control?” Biden: “I promise you, we will be able to do that.”

Marketwatch reported warnings have been issued to steer clear of the pipeline leaks:

The Swedish Maritime Administration on Tuesday issued a navigational warning due to leaks on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines.

…”We are warning vessels in the vicinity and asking them to keep a safe distance of five nautical miles (about nine kilometers) from the sites,” it said, while also cautioning that aircraft should keep a safety altitude of 1,000 meters in the area.

…The Danish Maritime Authority also issued a navigational warning and established a prohibitive zone within five nautical miles of the pipeline.

Nord Stream AG has only this statement about the leaks on their website, issued Monday night:

Pressure drop on both strings of the gas pipeline

Tonight, the dispatchers of the Nord Stream 1 control center registered a pressure drop on both strings of the gas pipeline.

The reasons are being investigated.

Maps of the pipelines, explosions and warnings:

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