Seven sailors were reported missing on October 15 after drone strikes set two chemical tankers on fire near Romania’s Black Sea coast. The San Marino-flagged Wine Trader, carrying 12 crew members, was struck approximately 13 nautical miles southeast of the Sulina Canal, just outside Romanian territorial waters. Five sailors were rescued, while emergency teams continued searching for the remaining seven. The Comoros-flagged chemical and oil tanker Yara J was also struck near Sulina the previous evening, inside Romanian waters. All crew members aboard the second vessel were reported safe.
Romanian authorities deployed helicopters and rescue vessels, but rough seas complicated the search operation. Romanian President Nicușor Dan confirmed that both vessels had been hit by drones without publicly assigning responsibility. A NATO military source attributed the drones to Russia, although the Romanian president did not confirm that attribution. The incidents followed several other attacks on commercial ships near Romania and Bulgaria, intensifying concerns over the safety of civilian maritime operations in the western Black Sea.
The attacks occurred near the entrance to the Sulina Canal, which connects the Black Sea with the Danube River and serves as an important export corridor for Ukraine. With regional shipping already facing significant security challenges, the latest incidents have drawn renewed attention to crew safety, maritime infrastructure and the vulnerability of commercial trade routes. For international logistics operators, the situation underscores the importance of monitoring disruptions and maintaining visibility across transportation networks. Explore how FreightGraph Freight Matching supports data-driven freight matching and operational decision-making.