TOMSK, Dec 23 –
RIA Tomsk. Tomsk traveler Evgeny
Kovalevsky and his colleague from Novosibirsk Stanislav Berezkin, who are
circumnavigating the world on a trimaran, got caught in a storm in the Atlantic
Ocean on December 21; the storm destroyed the front mast support, the press service
of the Tomsk branch of the Russian Geographical Society (RGS) told RIA Tomsk on
Thursday.
Earlier it was
reported that the Tomsk branch of the Russian Geographical Society in 2021
organized a round-the-world expedition on a trimaran, Kovalevsky and Berezkin
started from St. Petersburg in July 2021. Through satellite communications,
they conduct "Lessons from the Ocean" for schoolchildren. From the
shores of Cape Verde, where they were delayed for a month and a half due to a
breakdown, travelers set sail for Brazil on 11 December, intending to cross the
Atlantic in 25 days.
"The
Siberians' trimaran was damaged during a storm in the Atlantic. The vessel on
which the round-the-world expedition of Siberians Evgeny Kovalevsky and
Stanislav Berezkin is being made is in dangerous condition. On December 21, 10
days after the start of crossing the Atlantic on a trimaran, the Coastal Centre
of the expedition received the news of a severe storm and its consequences for
the ship," it was reported.
According to the
press service, the front leg of the pyramid, to which the mast and front jib
(sail) are attached, collapsed. The Brazilian Maritime Rescue Service offered
to evacuate the travelers, but they refused.
"We were
offered to abandon the vessel and evacuate. We assessed the amount of
provisions, the general condition of the vessel and decided to continue on our
own under the emergency sail," the press service quotes Kovalevsky.
It is specified,
that travelers have put a wooden support under a mast and have constructed an
emergency sail. The trimaran is now moving in the direction of Brazil.
It was
previously reported that during the trip Kovalevsky and Berezkin will follow
the route: Russia - Finland - Poland - Sweden - Denmark - Holland - Great
Britain - France - Spain - Portugal - Canary Islands - Brazil - Uruguay -
Argentina - Chile - Polynesia - Micronesia - Philippines - Indonesia - South
Africa - Namibia - Portugal - Great Britain - Denmark - Russia.
The project of
the expedition "Along the Way of Russian Circumnavigation Mariners"
won the contest of presidential grants in the nomination "Development of
Public Diplomacy and Support of Compatriots", receiving support of 7.9
million rubles. The total cost of its implementation was 16.2 million rubles.