A commercial vessel has capsized in the Black Sea near the Romanian port of Constanța following a suspected drone attack, leaving one crew member dead and three missing, according to Digi24
The Comoros-flagged vessel Khoryv encountered difficulties approximately 13 nautical miles (24 kilometres) east of Constanța on Friday, October 23, outside Romanian territorial waters.
According to the Romanian Naval Authority, the ship was carrying 13 crew members, including 10 Ukrainian and three Azerbaijani nationals. Romanian maritime authorities received a distress alert at around 10 a.m. after a fire broke out on board. The vessel sustained extensive damage and capsized, with authorities warning that it was at imminent risk of sinking.
A nearby commercial ship initially recovered 10 crew members, nine of whom were alive, while one was confirmed dead. The survivors were subsequently transferred to a Romanian Coast Guard vessel.
Search and rescue teams continued looking for the remaining three sailors, with vessels from the Romanian Coast Guard and the Romanian Agency for Saving Human Life at Sea (ARSVOM) participating in the operation.
Severe weather conditions and poor visibility prevented helicopters from joining the search. Emergency medical teams were also deployed to Constanța, including ambulances, a mobile intensive care unit and facilities prepared to receive multiple casualties.
The cause of the incident has not yet been officially established, although initial reports suggest that the vessel may have been struck by a drone.
Romanian President Nicușor Dan described the incident as another tragic consequence of Russia's war against Ukraine and called on Moscow to engage seriously with US and European peace initiatives. Romania's Foreign Minister Dan Neculăescu condemned the reported attack as a violation of international law and freedom of navigation. He said Romania was working with NATO allies, including Bulgaria and Turkey, to accelerate the deployment of additional maritime surveillance capabilities agreed within the North Atlantic Council. Former Defence Minister Radu Miruță also called for a stronger NATO presence in the Black Sea, warning that repeated incidents involving commercial vessels pose a growing security challenge for Romania.
The incident follows a series of suspected drone attacks against commercial shipping in the western Black Sea. According to figures cited by Romanian media, 11 vessels have been struck in recent weeks, seven of them near Romania. Approximately ten days earlier, another Comoros-flagged vessel, the tanker YARA J, reported a suspected drone strike near Sulina. A fire broke out on board, but the crew extinguished it without casualties. The latest incident has renewed concerns about maritime security, commercial shipping routes and rising insurance costs in the Black Sea, particularly for vessels operating near the Romanian coast.
Romanian authorities have not confirmed the origin of the suspected drone or established responsibility for the incident. The search for the three missing sailors remains ongoing.
