Oil Tanker Burns Off Sochi After Suspected Ukrainian Drone Attack

An oil tanker caught fire in the Black Sea off the Russian resort city of Sochi after what Russian authorities described as an attack by unmanned boats. The incident occurred on Tuesday evening, October 6, with dramatic images showing flames and thick black smoke rising from the vessel several kilometres offshore.

Russia’s Transport Ministry said the Liberian-flagged tanker was attacked by unmanned boats and that crude oil was burning in the sea. Firefighting efforts were expected to begin after the flames subsided enough for emergency vessels to approach safely. The ministry said all 23 crew members were Indian nationals and were rescued, with no casualties reported.

The vessel has been identified by several reports as the Aframax Rio. Ukrainian monitoring sources have linked the tanker to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, a network of vessels accused of helping Moscow transport oil while circumventing international sanctions. That classification and the vessel’s precise status remain matters of reporting rather than an independently established finding in the immediate aftermath of the fire.

Ukraine has not formally claimed responsibility for the tanker attack. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine had carried out strikes against Russian oil facilities and indicated that a tanker was burning in the Black Sea near Sochi. The Associated Press reported that it could not independently verify the images or the circumstances surrounding the tanker attack.

The incident comes amid an intensifying series of attacks involving commercial shipping in the Black Sea. Earlier this week, two commercial vessels were struck by drones in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone, while another cargo ship caught fire and later sank off Romania. Responsibility for some of those incidents remains disputed.

The tanker fire also occurred on the same day Russia launched a major wave of missile and drone attacks against Ukraine, killing civilians and damaging residential and industrial sites, according to Ukrainian officials. The escalating strikes underscore the growing risks to shipping and civilian infrastructure around the Black Sea.

Authorities were continuing to monitor the tanker and the surrounding waters as efforts to contain the fire were being prepared.