Russian Drone Hits High-Rise Building in Romania, Injuries Reported

A Russian drone hit a residential high-rise building overnight in the Romanian city of Galați, sparking a fire in an apartment on the 10th floor.

According to the Romanian Ministry of National Defence, two people were injured in the explosion and resulting fire. A woman suffered first-degree burns, while a 14-year-old experienced severe stress shock. Both were taken to the hospital after receiving medical treatment.

Around 70 people were evacuated from the damaged building or managed to leave on their own.

The Romanian Ministry of National Defence said that overnight into Friday, Russia launched drone attacks on civilian and infrastructure sites in Ukraine’s Odesa region near the border.

One of the Russian drones entered Romanian airspace and crashed onto the roof of a residential building in Galați.

At 01:19 a.m., two F-16 fighter jets were launched from the Fetesti air base to intercept the drone, supported by an IAR 330 SOCAT helicopter.

The pilots were authorized to engage the target. After the drone was detected in Romanian airspace, residents of the Tulcea, Galați, and Brăila counties were warned of an air threat through the Ro-Alert system. Authorities reported the drone’s crash at around 01:53 a.m.

Bomb disposal experts from Romania’s Inspectorate for Emergency Situations confirmed that all of the drone’s explosives had detonated, meaning there was no risk of another explosion.

Before the drone hit the apartment building, Ukraine’s Air Force reported an attack by a group of Russian drones targeting the Odesa region in the direction of Reni.

Monitoring channels tracked about 16 Shahed drones flying toward the city. The straight-line distance between the Ukrainian city of Reni and the Romanian city of Galați is about 21 km.

During an attack on the night of April 25, Russian drones also crossed into Romanian territory and crashed in Tulcea County. No one was injured in that incident, but an outbuilding and a power line were damaged.