Sweden’s icebreaker season is underway, starting with the first vessel departing from the northern city of Lulea, a city just over 100 km from the Arctic Circle. “This is what we wait for every year,” Amund Lindberg, operations manager for ice breaking at the Swedish Maritime Administration, said in a news release on Thursday. The Ale, Sweden’s smallest icebreaker, was put on standby earlier this month so it could offer assistance to merchant ships with just a few hours notice. Ice breaking season starting late this yearThe Swedish Maritime Administration says warm weather means ice has come late to country’s coasts this year. After the Ale, the Swedish Maritime Administration says the next line in is the Atle followed by the Frej, the Odin and the Ymer.
