The key facts
- Remains of sailors found on the tanker Wine Trader in Varna; DNA examinations ordered
- The fire broke out on October 15, reportedly after a drone strike
- Five sailors were rescued; the fate of seven had remained unknown
The remains were found during the clearing of the vessel
Human remains have been found aboard a vessel flying the flag of San Marino, which was delivered to Bulgaria for repairs after a fire off the coast of Romania. This was reported by Gazeta.Ru citing the Varna prosecutor's office. The tanker was taken in at a shipyard in Varna in early November, and during the work to clear the damage, heavily damaged remains of human bodies were discovered. DNA examinations have been ordered to identify the deceased.
What is known about the fire
The fire on the chemical tanker Wine Trader broke out on October 15, reportedly after a drone strike. Five sailors were rescued, but the fate of seven more people remained unknown — the discovered remains may therefore belong to those missing, but the identities of the deceased have not yet been officially established, and the results of the examinations are awaited.
Related reports
On October 13, the operational headquarters of Krasnodar Krai, citing information from the Marine Rescue Service, reported that after the attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Aframax Rio tanker in the Black Sea no oil product spill was recorded. Earlier, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, described how Russia responds to the Ukrainian Armed Forces' attacks in the Black Sea.
