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Recruits from the Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) Scouts Battalion have been taking advantage of the recent cold spell to get in some ice breaking drills.
Over 200 members have taken part in the exercise, which involves leaping into the freezing water, exposed by a hole cut into the ice, and negotiating their way across to the other side before extricating themselves, all under the watchful eye of instructors.
Ice breaking drills instructor 2Lt Oliver Jõesaar says that initial reactions from first-timers can involve panic.
2Lt Jõesaar said, via an EDF press release, that: This is a controlled environment, and the experience gain from instructors and in the presence of medical personnel is useful not only in service life but also on civvy street.