Drone Attack Sparks Fire on Tanker in Rostov-on-Don Port

On the night of December 18, a Russian tanker caught fire in the port of Rostov-on-Don due to a large-scale drone attack.

Local authorities and several Telegram channels confirmed this.

At first, Yuri Slyusar, the Governor of the Rostov Region, reported that the ship was damaged and that there were casualties among the crew.

Later, Alexander Skryabin, the Mayor of Rostov, confirmed the ship’s damage, noting that the fire was being extinguished directly on the tanker.

According to him, at the time of the drone attack, the vessel was docked at a pier in the western residential area of the city. Preliminary reports suggest that an oil product spill was avoided.

Skryabin confirmed that there were casualties and injuries aboard the tanker. By morning, the Governor of the region clarified that two crew members had died, and three others were injured.

He also mentioned that the fire, covering an area of 20 square meters, was extinguished by 5:21 a.m.

Eyewitnesses in local forums reported that the attack on the region was likely carried out using rocket-powered drones.

The Exilenova+ Telegram channel mentioned that the Russian tanker Valeriy Gorchakov was probably the target of the strike.

The vessel was built in 1969 as a dry cargo ship. In 2004, it was converted into an oil tanker for transporting all types of oil products.

In the morning, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed to have shot down three Ukrainian drones over the Rostov Region during the night of December 18.

On the night of December 17, Ukrainian Special Operations Forces’ strike drones hit the Russian Nikolaevskaya oil depot in the Rostov region.

The military also reported damage to the oil tanker Kapitan Gibert resulting from their actions.