Three commercial ships reportedly hit by drones near Romania’s Black Sea coast

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Two vessels catch fire and a third suffers damage in separate incidents over two days, raising fresh concerns over the safety of commercial shipping in the Black Sea.

Three commercial vessels have been struck by drones near Romania’s Black Sea coast in separate incidents on November 13 and 14, damaging one ship and triggering fires aboard two others, Romanian authorities said on Sunday.

No casualties were reported in the attacks, which come amid a series of drone incidents targeting commercial shipping in the Black Sea.

The first vessel, the Palau-flagged cargo ship Larissa 1, was hit at around 9.40 pm local time on November 13, approximately 12 kilometres from the Romanian coast near Sfantu Gheorghe.

The ship was heading towards the Romanian port of Sulina, with Ukraine reportedly listed as its final destination. The strike damaged a cargo crane but did not cause a fire, and the captain confirmed that no crew members were injured.

Romanian Defence Minister Stefan-Radu Oprea confirmed the first incident, saying authorities had been notified and an investigation was underway.

He said officials were monitoring drone activity near Romanian territory and that at least two alerts had been issued in Tulcea County on November 13.

On the evening of November 14, two additional commercial vessels were struck by drones near the coast, with fires breaking out aboard both ships, the Defence Ministry confirmed, according to Romanian news agency News.ro.

Romanian authorities have not identified the origin of the drones involved in the incidents.

The attacks add to growing concerns over the safety of commercial vessels operating in the Black Sea amid Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.

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