When this occurred in 1979, Soviet bosses rushed to seal the area, and insisted that it was merely tainted meat from the black market that was to blame for the few dozen deaths.
The photos, circulated by the prime minister's office, were both a poke in the eye of the European Union, which recently banned the import of seal products, and a gesture of solidarity with Canada's Inuit, for whom the fishy-tasting meat is a staple.