Drone attack on a dry cargo ship: Ukrainian Navy rescues crew, fatalities reported. PHOTO

On the night of 22 June, the dry cargo vessel VICTRESS (owned by a Turkish company and flying the Panamanian flag) was struck by an enemy drone. A major fire broke out on board, resulting in the death of one crew member.

According to Censor.NET, this was reported by the Ukrainian Navy.

As a result of the UAV strike, a fire broke out on the VICTRESS, which spread rapidly due to the challenging conditions. There were nine seafarers on board — citizens of Egypt, Turkey and India.

According to the Navy, crews of Ukrainian Armed Forces boats carried out a rescue operation under high-risk conditions and evacuated the seafarers from the vessel. Casualties were reported among the crew during the incident.

Death of a seafarer and evacuation of the crew

According to updated information, the ship’s 58-year-old cook, an Egyptian national, was killed as a result of the strike. Eight other crew members, including nationals of Turkey and India, were forced to abandon the vessel on a life raft and were evacuated by the Ukrainian military.

The vessel sustained significant damage and was rendered unseaworthy.

Further attacks on civilian vessels

According to Oleksii Kuleba, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for Reconstruction, Russian drones attacked two further merchant vessels flying the flags of Panama, Palau and Belize that same night. Some of them sustained damage but continued their journey; no casualties were reported.

Kuleba emphasised that attacks on the civilian merchant fleet constitute a war crime and pose a threat to global food and economic security, calling on the international community to respond decisively.

The Ukrainian Navy stated that it would continue to ensure the safety of shipping and rescue the crews of civilian vessels in the event of threats at sea.