The container ship CONTSHIP JET sank around midnight after being hit by three naval drones in the Black Sea. The ship was hit about 21 nautical miles southeast of Shabla, in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone. The sinking was confirmed by the Varna Regional Administration, “Traffic Control“ and “Maritime Administration“.
The attack took place around noon on October 28. Three holes were found on the starboard side of the vessel, after which it suffered serious damage and began to drift. The ship was sailing under the Liberian flag, was owned by a Greek shipowner and was traveling from Haifa to Constanta.
All 18 sailors were successfully evacuated. The crew consists of 14 Filipinos and four Ukrainians. Eight of them were taken aboard a Navy cutter, while the remaining ten were in the container ship's lifeboat.
Three Navy vessels and a "Border Police" ship participated in the rescue operation. The sailors were taken to Varna and accommodated in a hotel. No casualties were reported.
Information about spotted maritime drones was received by the Navy's operations center from a French patrol aircraft that was flying over the western part of the Black Sea. Ships in the area have been warned of the danger.
According to the crew, there were 421 containers on board. About 20 of them fell into the water after the attack. Part of the cargo includes fuel and other hazardous substances.
The initial inspection did not find any visible traces of seawater pollution. The Ministry of Environment and Water is inspecting the area and has scheduled laboratory tests of samples from five points along the Black Sea coast. After the sinking of the ship, the risks associated with the fuel on board and the cargo are yet to be clarified. At present, there is no confirmed data on the scale of possible pollution.
It has not yet been officially established who is behind the attack. In a joint statement, Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey called for an "immediate cessation of attacks that threaten merchant ships, maritime infrastructure and the safety of maritime activities."
The CONTSHIP JET incident is the latest attack on a merchant vessel in the Black Sea in recent weeks. On October 6, two ships were attacked, one of which sank, and the crew of the other, the ABLE, was evacuated with the help of the Bulgarian ferry DIOSCURIA. Two of the sailors were injured.
On October 13, the CHELSEA-3 ship was also hit near Byala. All 15 crew members were rescued, with eight of them taken to hospitals.
Against the backdrop of the series of incidents, the defense ministers of Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey agreed on a mechanism for coordination, information exchange and early warning of threats to shipping and maritime infrastructure in the Black Sea.