A marine drone that is typically used in the Ukraine war has caused a major explosion after hitting the main port of Constanța in NATO state Romania.
Despite it being isolated, footage showed smoke rising from the unmanned boat in the Black Sea port which had ‘self-detonated’ at around 10:30am local time, near an oil terminal.
Ukraine have confirmed that it was one of their naval drones but it had been knocked off course by Russian electronic interference.
‘While carrying out missions in the Black Sea operational area, one of the Ukrainian Navy’s unmanned surface vessels came under the influence of the enemy’s electronic warfare systems, lost control, and ended up near the coast of Romania,’ the Ukrainian navy said.
The Russian Embassy had initially suggested the drone belonged to Ukraine but has not responded to the accusation that their interference knocked it off course.
The Black Sea port was urgently evacuated amid fears of three more sea drones approaching, with residents within a one kilometre radius warned to take cover – however no casualties have been confirmed.
Restrictions have since eased, with the evacuation of nearby beaches being lifted and the country’s ‘Red Intervention Plan’ being deactivated, according to local media.
Staff in local hospitals were also temporarily alerted to prepare for an emergency, bringing in extra staff.
Romania’s president Nicușor Dan said that further information would be shared this afternoon and that if there are other drones, they will not reach the shore.
Romania shares a shares a 400-mile border with Ukraine, with the civilian and naval port around 100 miles south of this boundary.
A marine drone – similar to the ones used in the Ukraine war – has caused a major explosion after hitting the main port of Constanța in NATO state Romania
The unmanned boat had ‘self-detonated’ at around 10:30am local time and it was not immediately clear who the green-coloured drone belonged to
‘The maritime drone is of the type used in the war in Ukraine,’ said the NATO state’s defence ministry.
‘The situation is dynamic and we will return with information and official data as they become available.’
The explosion came after the sea drone had been ‘secured and isolated’ by forces of the Romanian Intelligence Service, the Coast Guard and the Ministry of National Defence. Evidently a timer was set to explode.
An ‘extreme’ RO Alert issued with an order to evacuate people within a one kilometre radius amid reports ‘three more maritime drones heading towards the port’.
The alert stated: ‘Evacuate the area within a radius of 1 km in the coastal area of the Port of Constanta.
‘Stay calm! Take shelter in cellars or civil protection shelters.
‘In the absence of shelter, stay inside the house, away from windows and external walls.’
Interior Minister Raed Arafat said: ‘We now know there is the risk of self-detonation, we have … evacuated in case there are more drones,’ Arafat said.
‘We are not panicking, the measures are purely preventative.’
An emergencies chief said: ‘There is a possibility that there may be other drones in the area, which is why the RO Alert message was issued for Constanţa and Tulcea counties.
‘We decided to preventatively evacuate the coastal area for one kilometre until we ensure that there is no risk of another explosion.’
The Russian embassy posted on their Facebook: ‘Given the intentionally incomplete information disseminated by the Romanian Ministry of National Defense regarding the maritime drone that exploded in the port of Constanta, as well as three other similar drones drifting towards Romanian territorial waters, the Russian Embassy in Romania informs the Romanian public that these are Ukrainian unmanned maritime vehicles, used by the Kiev regime to commit terrorist acts against civilian ships and to create threats to the safety of navigation in the Black Sea.
‘Any attempts to directly or indirectly associate these drones with Russia and to attribute responsibility for the incident to it are groundless.’
Romanian Prime Minister and President Nicușor Dan were urgently informed about the incidents, said reports. A criminal investigation is now underway.
The explosion was near the headquarters of the Romanian Agency for Saving Human Life at Sea in the civilian part of the port.
The main NATO land battlegroup in Romania is French-led and also includes troops from Belgium, Spain and Luxembourg.
Other NATO forces also rotate through or operate in Romania, including U.S. troops at Mihail Kogălniceanu and Câmpia Turzii, and air-policing deployments such as the UK RAF Typhoons.
The explosion comes just days after a Russian drone crashed into an apartment block in Galati, a city in southeastern Romoania close to the border with Ukraine.
Two people were injured and it was the first time that a drone had struck a densely populated area in a NATO state during the conflict in Ukraine.
