A kilo ton of oil leaked due to Russian attack on Chornomorsk port

As a result of a Russian strike on the port of Chornomorsk in Odesa region on May 3, Kernel's vegetable oil transshipment terminal was damaged and more than 1,100 tons of products were leaked.

According to The Page, citing Kernel's press service, an employee of the company was also injured in the attack.

The company noted that the drone hit the tank directly, but the leak was localized and the oil did not get into the sea, so there is no threat to the environment.

However, the strike caused a large-scale fire that engulfed part of the production facilities. The fire and drone debris damaged equipment, office space, and logistics infrastructure, including four railroad tanks. Due to the extensive damage, the company has suspended receiving and shipping products.

On the night of May 3, Odesa region once again became the target of Russian drone attacks, killing two people and injuring five others. In Odesa district, enemy drones hit three residential buildings, and two more were damaged. Port infrastructure facilities and equipment were also damaged. Rescuers are currently extinguishing the fires.

Meanwhile, the area of sea pollution by oil that leaked from the damaged tanks in late April in the northwestern part of the Black Sea has rapidly increased from tens to hundreds of square kilometers. Satellite imagery on April 29 showed that the slick had expanded dramatically and moved toward the coast of Odesa, covering more and more water.

Earlier, on Sentinel-1 radar images, the slick was still pressed against the coast between Chornomorsk and Odesa, with a length of about 35.7 km. However, after the weather conditions changed, the situation deteriorated sharply.

As noted by ecologist Vladyslav Balinsky, this was the third such oil spill into the Black Sea, and seahorses are likely to be the next to be fatally affected.

Кирило Бойко