Beaufort scale issued if winds of Beaufort force 9 or frequent gusts of at least 52 knots are expected.; "Storm Force Warnings" are issued if Beaufort force 10 or frequent gusts of at least 61 knots are expected; "Violent Storm Force Warnings" are issued if Beaufort force 11 or frequent gusts of at least 69 knots are expected; "Hurricane Force Warnings" are issued if winds of greater than 64 knots are expected. This scale is also widely used in the Netherlands, Germany, Greece, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malta and Macau, although with some differences between them. Taiwan uses the Beaufort scale with
MS Estonia starboard because of poor cargo distribution. According to the final disaster report, the weather was rough, with a wind of , force 7–8 on the Beaufort scale and a significant wave height of compared with the highest measured significant wave height in the Baltic Sea of . Esa Mäkelä, the captain of "Silja Europa" who was appointed on-scene commander for the subsequent rescue effort, described the weather as "normally bad", or like a typical autumn storm in the Baltic Sea. All scheduled passenger ferries were at sea. The official report says that while the exact speed at the time of