Tuesday, October 6, 2026 - Eleven crew members were rescued after a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn caught fire and sank in the Black Sea off Romania.
The crew included Indian and Azerbaijani nationals, and Romanian authorities confirmed that two people died in the incident. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy blamed Russian drones for the strike, while Romanian authorities have not independently confirmed the cause.
The vessel, identified as the Royad Mammadov, was sailing from Ukraine’s Izmail port toward Ravenna, Italy, when the incident occurred inside Romania’s exclusive economic zone.
Eleven survivors were pulled from the vessel, while injured crew members were taken for medical treatment. India’s embassy in Romania said three Indian nationals were among the crew and that all three were safe, although one was injured.
The attack is raising fresh concerns about the safety of commercial shipping across the Black Sea, a crucial route for grain and other international trade. The incident came just one day before drones struck two more Turkish-owned commercial vessels off Bulgaria, where 18 sailors—including seven Indians and 11 Turks—were rescued.
The rapidly expanding risks are putting additional pressure on governments to protect civilian shipping and prevent further disruption to vital trade routes.
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