The drone-hit merchant ship “Chelsea 3“ is located east of Primorsko and continues to move without a crew in a southerly direction. The vessel was carried away by strong winds and sea currents after its anchor failed to hold it.
According to the latest publicly announced data, there is no confirmation that an operation to tow the ship to Burgas has begun. According to information cited by Maritime.bg, its location was determined by the automatic identification system AIS. Previously, “Chelsea 3“ was at anchor east of Byala.
The ship is unmanned
„Chelsea 3“ sails under the Maltese flag and bears the international number IMO 9361392. It was hit by three drones on October 13, about 16-17 nautical miles east of Byala.
All 15 sailors on board were evacuated by Bulgarian institutions. The crew consists of seven Ukrainian and eight Azerbaijani citizens. The border police ship „Burgas“ picked them up when the waves exceeded 3 points, and the sailors were later transported to Varna.
Three of them are admitted to the Naval Hospital with second-degree burns. One of the injured has also been diagnosed with a mild craniocerebral trauma. According to the Ministry of Defense, there is no danger to their lives.
The drift continues south
The captain of the border ship “Burgas“ Ivan Ivanov said that the vessel was hit in the middle, bow and stern. “The conditions were very bad - wind, rain, the sea was extremely rough“, he said.
After the rescue operation, the ship was left without people on board. According to published data, it was gradually pushed south along the Bulgarian coast and is now in the area east of Primorsko.
The vessel, built in 2006, has a carrying capacity of 5,827 tons. Its owner, Evgeni Zoltikov, said after the attack: “The safety of the crew remains the main priority“.
No deadline has been announced for securing or relocating “Chelsea 3“. Until such an operation is undertaken, the movement of the ship without a crew remains under surveillance.
Sources: maritime.bg, bta.bg, 24chasa.bg