Satellite images show how the earthquake in Russia affected a major nuclear submarine base
One of the Russian Pacific Fleet's strategic facilities was hit by waves up to five meters high, although there are no signs of underwater damage.
A key Russian Navy nuclear submarine base on the Kamchatka Peninsula suffered visible damage after the powerful tsunami triggered by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the region last Wednesday, according to satellite images analysed by The Telegraph and captured by the US company Umbra Space.
Naval base hit by tidal waves
Waves, which reached five meters in some areas of the Russian eastern coast, hit the Rybachy naval base, located in Avacha Bay, near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, where nuclear-powered submarines of the Borei and Delta class, the closest to the United States within Russian territory, are moored.
The synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, taken Thursday morning after the tsunami hit, show a section of the main pier bent at an abnormal angle, possibly torn from its moorings.
The images, compared by The Telegraph with photographs from July 17, confirm that a submarine was present at that location before the tsunami, although none was recorded at the time of the tsunami, according to satellite observations.
Dr. Sidharth Kaushal of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), consulted by the English newspaper, has clarified that the damage does not appear to directly affect the nuclear vessels. “There are no signs of impact on the submarine fleet. It seems that it was a surface ship tied up at the dock, not a submarine,” he assured.
Structural risk or minor incident?
Although the impact is not considered of immediate military significance, experts such as Tom Sharpe, a retired Royal Navy commander, have warned of the logistical consequences. “The dock is at a terrible angle, which would make it difficult for a ship to enter or leave,” he explained to The Telegraph. He also noted the presence of a tugboat in the damaged area, possibly mobilized to begin repairs.
“If a wave was able to bend a structure like that, what else could it have done inside the complex?” Sharpe asked. In this context, submarines undergoing maintenance, which cannot depart quickly, would be particularly vulnerable, even though nuclear docks are designed to withstand seismic impacts.
Rybachy is one of the most sensitive facilities in Russia’s Pacific Fleet. Located just 120 kilometers from the quake’s epicenter, the site was hit by the tsunami approximately 15 minutes after the temblor. Although Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov assured through official media that there were no casualties and that the facility’s “seismic resistance” worked as intended, the incident has raised strategic questions.
Some analysts are already questioning whether it is prudent to concentrate such a significant portion of Russia’s deterrent capability on a single base, especially in a seismically active region.
Meanwhile, Moscow may be forced to review its naval infrastructure standards, particularly in structures like the damaged pier, whose upper section—unlike other concrete docks—appears to have been a more vulnerable floating platform. “It looks like a classic Russian. With duct tape,” Sharpe quipped.
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