Seven crew members of a chemical tanker have gone missing after a fire on the vessel near Romania's territorial waters in the Black Sea. The incident occurred on Thursday morning, and Romanian authorities reported that an emergency call was received from the ship at 7 AM local time. The tanker, flying the flag of San Marino, caught fire approximately 13 nautical miles from the port of Sulina, located on Romania's eastern coast near the Ukrainian border.
Rescue Operation Underway
Romanian officials, including border police and air units, were quickly dispatched to assist the crew at the scene. According to reports, five crew members have been rescued so far. Meanwhile, another tanker also caught fire near Sulina on Wednesday, but officials stated that its crew is safe.
The Cause of the Fires is Unknown
Romanian authorities have not yet disclosed the cause of these two incidents. The fires occurred just hours after Romania's Ministry of Defense announced that an air alert had been issued around Snake Island — a Ukrainian territory located about 40 kilometers from where the emergency signal from the San Marino tanker was sent. There is also a report of a drone sighting near Sulina, which subsequently disappeared from radar.
In the past two weeks, at least five commercial vessels in the Black Sea have been targeted in potential drone attacks. These deadly attacks have significantly impacted a key route that carries 95 percent of Ukraine's grain exports. On October 6, two ships in Bulgaria's Black Sea economic zone were targeted in a drone attack, one of which sank, leaving 10 crew members missing. On Tuesday, two more vessels were targeted near Bulgaria, with 11 crew members also missing.
Nicușor Dan, the President of Romania, is scheduled to meet today at 1:30 PM with Rumen Radev, the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, and Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General, for discussions on the sidelines of the European Council summit in Brussels.
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