page_title: Finnish torpedo boat S2
section_title: The accident
hierarchical_section_title: Finnish torpedo boat S2 / The accident
caption_attribution_description: Torpedovene S2
context_page_description: S2 was a Finnish Sokol class torpedo boat that had been seized from the Russians after the Finnish Civil War 1918. She sank during a fierce storm on October 4, 1925, taking with her the whole crew of 53.
context_section_description: The pilot station at Reposaari observed the struggle of the ship in the waters between Outoori and the Säppi Lighthouse. The high waves made the ship roll violently until a breaker rolled over the ship. The pilot station saw the ship for a short while (when it probably had rolled over) but it disappeared from view at 1.25 pm. Later the pilots learned that it had been the torpedo boat S2 that they had observed. The torpedo boat's crew of 53 were lost in the disaster.
  The loss of S2 was a great shock to the nation and to the young navy. An intense debate about the underlying reasons followed. An investigation panel was appointed to find the reasons for the disaster. At the place of the sinking, the sea bed rises sharply, and creates sharp breakers, especially when the wind is coming from west or northwest. This was later considered to be the main cause of the disaster. Further, the seagoing qualities had not fully been researched in the old Russian ships. There were, for example, no stabilization tables or ballast calculations for the type.
  The investigation also found that the crew had not obtained updated weather data, although such were available. The investigators especially criticized the leadership of the commander of the formation, Yrjö Roos. Roos had a reputation of being very stubborn, he probably tried to get all the ships to Vaasa, where they were expected the following day. The order to leave the formation was given very late, and when given, it was very unclear. All the different ships' captains interpreted it in different ways. In the publics' opinion, Roos was to be the scapegoat for the loss of S2.
  One year later, Commander Roos was on a routine trip with one of the navy's A-boats to Örö. Upon arrival, Roos was found dead in his cabin. The investigation revealed that he had died from carbon monoxide poisoning from a faulty exhaust pipe. This incident came however to spark different conspiracy theories.
caption: The torpedo boat S2 with her sister ships
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