Two oil tankers hit by explosions and fires in the Black Sea off the Turkish north coast
Turkish authorities said Friday they had evacuated the crews of two oil tankers in the Black Sea after explosions and fires broke out on board.
Türkiye’s General Directorate of Maritime Affairs said on its website that the oil tanker Kairos caught fire 28 nautical miles (52 kilometers) from the Turkish coast as it headed unloaded to the Russian port of Novorossiysk.
It noted that the cause was due to external factors, adding that all 25 crew members were safe.
Flames were seen rising from the bow of the ship, as Kocaeli governor Ilhami Aktaş told Turkish NTV that the fire broke out on board the Gambia-flagged tanker at 6 pm (1500 GMT) off the coast of his state in northern Türkiye.
The Directorate of Maritime Affairs reported that a second oil tanker, the Ferrat, was reported to have suffered an accident about 35 nautical miles away, without specifying its nature.
“Rescue teams and a cargo ship were sent to the scene… The ship’s crew of 20 is fine and heavy smoke was detected in the engine room”.
Turkish Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu told Turkish NTV that “an external cause means that the ship was hit by a mine, a missile, a similar projectile, a drone or a drone”.
The tankers are under Western sanctions for violating sanctions on Russia and transporting oil from its ports.
The Turkish minister said the 25 crew members of the tanker Kairos were evacuated safely, and rescue teams also arrived at the Ferrat vessel.
“Their health and safety aren’t in danger,” he added, pointing out that no pollution has been detected so far, but we are monitoring the development of the fire.
