A sea drone has exploded in Romania’s largest port on the Black Sea coast, sparking a major evacuation.
The blast happened at the port of Constanta at around 10.30am EEST (8.30am UK time). The surrounding area has been cordoned off with a huge pillar of smoke seen pouring into the sky. The Romanian Defence Ministry said the drone was thought to be “of the type used in the war in Ukraine”, with Romanian media reporting that it was a Magura-type drone.
The explosion comes after a drone, which NATO has confirmed was Russian, crashed into a Romanian block of flats late last Friday. The strike in the town of Galati prompted international condemnation, with Sir Keir Starmer calling the incident a “serious violation of NATO airspace”.
Vladimir Putin said at the time that the drone’s origin was “yet to be determined” and urged Romania to handover the drone so it could conduct “an objective investigation”.
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Our Defence Editor Chris Hughes has said he believes the sea drone explosion may have been the result of a Ukrainian error.
He said Romanian media are reporting that it is a Magura V5 drone – a highly advanced Ukrainian unmanned surface vessel (USV) typically deployed in swarms.
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Authorities issued an “Extreme Alert” RO-Alert message for residents of part of Constanta shortly after the explosion.
The English-language warning reads: “Evacuate the area within a 1 km radius of the Costanta Port. Take shelter in basements or in civil protection shelters. If there is no shelter around you, stay inside the house and keep away from windows and outside facing walls.”
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The Romanian Defency Ministry said: “The area had already been secured and cordoned off by forces from the Romanian Intelligence Service, the Coast Guard, and the Ministry of National Defense; at that time, the object was undergoing assessment and being secured.”
It also confirmed that the drone was not part of the Romanian Army’s inventory and that the army had not recently carried out any military exercises in the Black Sea area.
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The Romanian Defence Ministry confirmed that a sea drone exploded and said the drone was thought to be “of the type used in the war in Ukraine”.
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The device is described as a marine drone of Ukrainian origin, carrying tens of kilograms of explosives, Stiripesurse reports.
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The explosion comes after a Russian drone targeting Ukraine struck an apartment building in eastern Romania on May 29, injuring two people in the NATO member country.
The drone crashed onto the roof of the building in the Danube port city of Galati and sparked a fire, the Romanian defence ministry said in a statement. The two injuries were minor and the building was evacuated.
The incursion added to concerns that the Russia-Ukraine War could spread across NATO’s borders.
A Russian drone previously struck an apartment building in Galati(Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
Romanian authorities activated the Red Intervention Plan – the highest level of emergency preparedness triggered by the Department for Emergency Situations – at 10.29am EEST (8.29am BST).
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The “sea drone” was discovered at around 5.50am EEST (3.30am BST) near the headquarters of the Romanian Agency for Saving Human Life at Sea, located in the North Pier area of the Port of Constanta, according to Romanian outlet Stiripesurse.
Police officers, gendarmerie and border police were deployed to the scene, where they put security measures in place and began investigations.
The device then exploded on its own in dock 78 of the port, said Bogdan Toma, spokesman for Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations.
A powerful explosion occurred in Constanta(Image: Facebook)
A sea drone has reportedly exploded in the port of Constanta, which is the largest coastal and port city in Romania.
The blast happened at around 10.30am EEST (8.30am UK time), local media report.
The surrounding area has been cordoned off and people have been evacuated.
There were no reports of injuries, according to Bogdan Toma, spokesman for Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations.