Authorities in Russia’s Black Sea resort city of Sochi reopened beaches Thursday, saying tests found no oil contamination after a drone attack set an oil tanker ablaze off the coast earlier this week.
Sochi and the neighboring federal territory of Sirius closed their beaches on Tuesday after the Liberian-flagged Aframax Rio caught fire following an attack by Ukrainian naval drones.
Sochi’s administration said seawater samples taken across the city met sanitary standards, according to consumer protection watchdog Rospotrebnadzor. Satellite monitoring also found no oil slicks, it added.
Sirius administration head Dmitry Plishkin said tests found no traces of oil in seawater and air pollution levels remained within permitted limits.
The tanker was attacked on the evening of Oct. 6. Russia’s Transportation Ministry said burning oil prevented rescue vessels from approaching the ship. The flames were extinguished on Wednesday.
All 23 crew members, who were Indian nationals, were rescued.
The amount of oil aboard the tanker has not been disclosed. The Mash Telegram news channel, citing unidentified sources, reported that the vessel was fully loaded.
The tanker continued to drift along the coast after the fire. Its operator, Executive Ship Management, said Wednesday that officials and two senior crew members had started inspecting the vessel to assess its condition.
Built in 2004, the Aframax Rio is 247 meters long and 42 meters wide, with a deadweight capacity of 107,100 metric tons.
According to the investigative outlet The Insider, the tanker has called at Russian Black Sea ports and is under Ukrainian sanctions. Kyiv has linked it to Russia’s “shadow fleet,” a network of tankers used to transport oil and circumvent sanctions.
This article was translated with the help of artificial intelligence and was reviewed by a Moscow Times editor before publication. Learn more about our newsroom’s AI policy here.
Read this article in Russian at The Moscow Times’ Russian service.
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