Drones sank a civilian vessel off the coast of Bulgaria

In the Black Sea off the Bulgarian coast, drones attacked two merchant ships. One of them sank near the town of Byala, while the crew of the other was evacuated onto the Bulgarian ferry "DIOSCURIA."

This was reported by the Bulgarian television channel bTV.

According to preliminary information, the vessels targeted were the general cargo ships “ALFA WATAN,” flying the Togolese flag, and “ABLE,” flying the Palauan flag.

The “ALFA WATAN” sustained critical damage to its hull and sank east of the Bulgarian coast. As of the time of publication, there was no official information regarding the fate of its crew or any possible survivors.

A massive fire broke out on board the “ABLE” following the collision. All 18 crew members were forced to abandon ship. The Bulgarian passenger ferry “DIOSCURIA,” which was dispatched to the scene, rescued all 18 sailors.

Some of those rescued were injured. They received first aid on board the ferry, after which a medical evacuation to the Navy hospital in Varna was planned.

The circumstances of the attack and the type of drones used are currently under investigation. According to bTV, this is the first such attack on vessels in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone.

PHOTO: vesselfinder.com

In response to the incident, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev convened an emergency meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Transport, the intelligence services, and other relevant agencies.

Also in the Black Sea, a commercial vessel flying the flag of the Marshall Islands and carrying rapeseed oil was damaged by a strike from a Russian drone. A fire broke out in the vessel’s superstructure.

Андрій Колісніченко