Gas tanker bound for Ukraine hit in Black Sea, catches fire outside Romania’s territorial waters
An LPG tanker carrying gas was attacked and exploded approximately 30 km from Sulina, outside Romanian territorial waters, on Monday night into Tuesday, July 20 to 21. The Gas Lisbon ship, under the Liberian flag, was heading towards Ukraine and, according to Romanian president Nicușor Dan, it was most likely targeted as part of Russia's war on its neighbor.
The ship carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was approximately 20 nautical miles (around 37 kilometres) from Romania’s shore, in the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone, when it was attacked. After being hit, the 3,790-ton vessel sailing under the Liberian flag caught fire and remains alight at the moment of writing, according to Biziday.
According to the Romanian Emergency Situations Department, following the incident, the vessel suffered major damage, and a fire broke out on deck. The sailors took refuge in one part of the ship and were no longer able to use their own evacuation means. After receiving the alert through MRCC Constanța, a complex search and rescue operation was launched. Communications with the vessel were maintained through a nearby commercial vessel, used as a radio relay.
The sailors' rescue was coordinated by the Constanța Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), which mobilized a Romanian Coast Guard intervention vessel and the SAR Apollo and SAR Artemis rescue vessels belonging to the Romanian Agency for Saving Human Life at Sea (ARSVOM). Due to unfavourable weather conditions, aerial intervention with a helicopter belonging to the General Aviation Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs could not be carried out.
After arriving at the intervention site, the crew of the SAR APOLLO vessel launched two life rafts and successfully evacuated all 17 crew members. Three of them required urgent medical care: two suffered burns covering approximately 10-15% of their body surface, while the third had multiple injuries and bleeding.
After the evacuation, the SAR APOLLO vessel headed towards Sulina Port. To reduce response time, the “Delta” Emergency Situations Inspectorate of Tulcea County mobilised a multi-purpose boat and a medical team to take over the victims and transport them to the Tulcea Emergency Reception Unit. At the same time, the coordinating doctor ordered a meeting between the medical crews so that the transfer and medical assistance could be carried out as quickly as possible.
President Nicușor Dan confirmed in a post on X that the Gas Lisbon vessel, which had departed from the port of Alexandria and was heading towards the Ukrainian port of Reni, was hit outside Romanian territorial waters. He added that state institutions would establish the circumstances, causes and responsibilities of the incident, which is “most likely part of the illegal war of aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.”
Sources from the Lower Danube River Administration in Galati told Digi24 the ship was attacked by a naval drone. The origin of this drone is currently unknown and the investigation is ongoing.
The vessel is currently anchored, and a warning has been issued for other ships to avoid the incident perimeter.
(Photo source: Marinetraffic via Sakis Antoniou)
