In brief
Three drones struck a container ship east of Cape Kaliakra on Wednesday, causing it to sink around midnight. An owner’s statement said all 18 crew members—14 Filipinos and 4 Ukrainians—were safe and ashore, and Bulgarian authorities confirmed the sinking and the crew’s rescue. Environment specialists will sample seawater at five coastal locations to detect pollutants such as petroleum, polychlorinated biphenyls, and metals.
A container vessel struck by three maritime drones east of Cape Kaliakra sank around midnight Wednesday, according to the Varna Regional Administration and confirmed by Traffic Control and the Maritime Administration Executive Agency.
The ship, whose cargo included lithium‑ion batteries, was hit about 21 nautical miles southeast of Shabla; all 18 crew members were rescued and brought to Varna.
In a statement, the ship’s owner, Contships Management, said the 14 Filipinos and 4 Ukrainians were safe and ashore after the attack.
Defence Ministry teams collected samples from two locations in Bulgarian territorial waters and reported no visible signs of pollution.
On Thursday, the Black Sea Basin Directorate and the Executive Environment Agency will collect seawater samples at five coastal sites—Durankulak, Shabla, Cape Kaliakra, Byala and Sozopol—per the Environment and Water Ministry.
The samples will be analysed for petroleum products, polychlorinated biphenyls and metals, as well as other physicochemical indicators. They will be processed at the Executive Environment Agency’s regional laboratories in Varna and Burgas.
Sewall sampling will also explore the area around the sunken ship to determine if any pollution is present beyond visual inspection.
Officials say the fifth drone attack in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone since the beginning of October has prompted the environmental assessment, which will be made public once completed.
