Russia’s 20,000-Ton Icebreaker Admiral Makarov Goes Up in Flames at Kronstadt Shipyard

A fire broke out aboard Russia’s 20,000-ton diesel-electric icebreaker Admiral Makarov while the vessel was undergoing repairs at the Kronstadt Marine Plant near St. Petersburg.

The fire erupted aboard the vessel on September 5, with Russian emergency services deploying 52 firefighters and 10 pieces of equipment to the shipyard. The blaze covered an area of roughly 80 square meters before being brought under control, according to Russian Telegram channel 112.

Firefighters extinguished within approximately two hours. No casualties were reported. The cause of the fire and the extent of damage to the icebreaker have not been disclosed.

Admiral Makarov is a Project R-1039 diesel-electric icebreaker built by Wärtsilä in Helsinki, Finland, in 1975 as part of the Yermak class constructed for the Soviet Union.

The vessel has a displacement of approximately 20,247 tonnes and is nearly 135 meters long. Its propulsion system produces about 30.5 megawatts of power, allowing the icebreaker to navigate through continuous ice up to 1.5 meters thick at around two knots.

Admiral Makarov previously operated in Russia’s Far East and Arctic regions before being transferred to Rosmorport’s Northwestern Basin Branch in late 2025. After completing repairs, the vessel was expected to escort ships to Russian ports in the eastern Gulf of Finland during winter navigation.

The icebreaker has been undergoing repairs since spring 2025, including work on its hull, propellers, three propeller shafts, and main engines. Repairs to the engines were scheduled to continue through the end of 2026.

Kronstadt, located on Kotlin Island in the Gulf of Finland, is also home to a major Russian naval base. In June 2026, Ukrainian drones struck the Russian Project 20380 missile corvette Boykiy at the Kronstadt naval base, causing a fire aboard the vessel.

In October 2025, another major accident hit a Russian shipyard when the unfinished PK-700 heavy floating crane capsized at the Sevastopol Marine Plant in temporarily occupied Crimea, killing two people and injuring at least 20 others.

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