Drone entering Estonian airspace from Russia hits Auvere power station chimney

Drone entering Estonian airspace from Russia hits Auvere power station chimney A drone which entered Estonian territory from Russian airspace hit a chimney at the Auvere power station in Ida-Viru County early on Wednesday morning. No one was injured in the incident, and the power infrastructure was not damaged. A drone also entered Latvian airspace last night, Latvian authorities say. The incidents happened at a time when the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga was under Ukrainian drone strike, while oil facilities at the port of Primorsk, on the other side of the Gulf of Finland from Ust-Luga, has been burning for over two days now. "On the night of March 25 at 3:43 a.m., a drone hit the chimney of the Auvere power plant. No one was injured in the accident," a spokesperson for the Internal Security Service (ISS) said. The Prosecutor's Office said the drone was not intentionally directed towards the Auvere power plant or towards Estonia generally. "According to current information, the drone was not directed at Estonia. Initial actions are currently being taken, the investigation will clarify the more specific circumstances," said State Prosecutor General Astrid Asi via a press release. The ISS is investigating the incident, directed by the Prosecutor's Office. Rescue Board (Päästamet) deminers are currently also on site. Government convening emergency meeting Justice Minister Liisa-Ly Pakosta (Eesti 200) told ERR on Wednesday morning that the government is to convene for an emergency session this morning, concerning a security incident. Generator Enefit Power says there is no immediate damage to the power plant, while the incident will not have a significant impact on the Estonian electricity system. Ukraine attacked the port of Ust-Luga with drones overnight March 24-25. Ukrainian drone attacks were reported in the Leningrad oblast, where X lies. "These are the effects of Russia's full-scale war of aggression. We can assume that we will see more such incidents," said Margo Palloson, the ISS director general. The ISS, known in Estonian by the acronym Kapo, is appealing to any members of the public who may have witnessed the incident to come forward and to contact them on their official email address, kapo@kapo.ee. The ISS stresses that unauthorized members of the public must not attend the scene and must keep their distance from anything resembling drone debris should they spot it, as this could be potentially hazardous due to the risk of explosion. Any debris or other drone-related sightings should be reported to the emergency line on 112. A crashed drone was also reported in Latvia, in the village of Dobročina in southeastern Latvia, noted ISS spokesperson Marta Tuul. Latvian public broadcaster LSM reported the Latvian air force on Wednesday morning identified a foreign unmanned aerial vehicle entering Latvian airspace from Russia. Early warning systems detected a sound resembling an explosion in the Krāslava region, LSM said. The EE-ALARM threat notification system also sent an SMS to people's mobile phones on Wednesday morning stating: "Defense Forces: Due to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, there is an associated drone threat in the area. If you see one, take cover and call 112. Additional information KRIIS.EE and 1247." Primorsk and Ust-Luga serve Russia's "shadow fleet" of oil tankers, and their closure seriously impacts Russia's ability to fund its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. -- Editor: Andrew Whyte, Mait Ots