Kotka, Finland

After the scattering of little communities east of Porvoo, KOTKA seems immense. Built on an island in the Gulf of Finland, Kotka's past reflects its proximity to the sea. Numerous battles have been fought off its shores, among them the Sweden– Russia confrontation of 1790, the largest battle ever seen in Nordic waters: almost 10,000 people lost their lives. Sixty-odd years later during the Crimean War, the British fleet reduced Kotka virtually to rubble. In modern times, though, the sea has been the basis of the town's prosperity: sitting at the end of the Kymi River and boasting a deep-water harbour, the town makes a perfect cargo transit point – causing most locals to live in fear of a major accident occurring in the industrial section, or in the freight yards. Only two roads link Kotka to the mainland and a speedy evacuation of its inhabitants would be almost impossible.