Bulk Carrier Collides with Mine in the Black Sea, Resulting in Two Injuries, According to Ukraine
A bulk carrier flying the Panama flag, en route to the River Danube port for grain loading, collided with a Russian mine in the Black Sea, causing injuries to two crew members, as reported by Ukrainian officials on Thursday.
The incident occurred on Wednesday and is the latest in a series of civilian vessels striking explosives in the Black Sea. Kyiv attributes these incidents to heightened Russian attacks on shipping and port infrastructure.
As of now, Russia’s defense ministry has not responded to requests for comments on the incident. According to an anonymous shipping source speaking to Reuters, the vessel that collided with the mine is reportedly the Greek-operated VYSSOS. The Athens-based manager of the vessel, listed in databases as Nava Shipping, could not be immediately located for comment.
“A Panama-flagged civilian vessel was blown up on an enemy sea mine in the Black Sea … The vessel lost its course and control, and a fire broke out on the upper deck,” Ukraine’s southern military command said on Telegram.
In the recent incident, a captain and an Egyptian sailor sustained injuries, with the latter being an Egyptian citizen who was subsequently taken to a hospital in the city of Izmail, as reported by the head of the Odesa regional prosecutor’s office during a briefing.
The occurrence took place early on Wednesday at a river mouth, with the vessel ceasing to update its position, according to data from the ship tracking and maritime analytics provider, MarineTraffic. The ship, identified as heading to Izmail by the British maritime security company Ambrey, suffered a mine impact on its stern, leading to equipment and machinery failure due to the subsequent detonation.
The vessel involved in the incident had a total of 18 crew members on board, consisting of 13 Egyptians, three Ukrainians, and two Turkish citizens.
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According to Ukrainian authorities, Moscow has escalated attacks on Ukraine’s port infrastructure since mid-July, notably after withdrawing from a U.N.-brokered agreement facilitating safe passage for Ukrainian grain shipments through the Black Sea.
In response, Kyiv has established an alternative route along the western shores of the Black Sea. The Ukrainian government alleges that Russian forces have been consistently deploying explosive devices in the vicinity of this new route.
