Estonia ferry disaster in 1994 caused by bow failure not explosion, report confirms

Investigators say latest studies of wreckage reveal no sign to back up alternative theories of a collision or a blast

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The sinking of the Estonia ferry more than 30 years ago was caused by the failure of its bow section, not an explosion or collision as claimed by some, authorities have said, in a report aimed at finally closing the case on Europe’s worst civil maritime disaster since the second world war.

“The MV Estonia sank as a result of the collapse of its bow construction,” Estonian, Swedish and Finnish investigators said. “There is, therefore, no reason to start a new full-scale … investigation of the accident.”