FIRE KILLS TWO ABOARD SHIP IN BLACK SEA OFF ROMANIA

A fire broke out aboard a vessel in the Black Sea beyond Romania's territorial waters, killing two people, Romania's interior ministry said on Monday. The ministry said 11 crew members had been rescued from the ship, which was reported to be sinking. Romania's Naval Authority confirmed the vessel involved was the Royad Mammadov. A spokesperson for the Naval Authority said no further details were available, and the cause of the fire had not been disclosed.

Romanian media reported that the ship was Turkish and had been carrying a cargo of grain. The fire was reported to have broken out near an oil platform operated by the energy company OMV Petrom. According to the tracking site VesselFinder.com, the vessel was flagged to St Kitts and Nevis and was bound for Ravenna in Italy. The same tracking data showed the ship had last docked at Izmail in Ukraine before the fire broke out.

Romania is a NATO member that shares a 614-kilometre border with Ukraine. Since the war in Ukraine began four years ago, Romania has reported airspace breaches by Russian drones and the presence of floating sea mines along regional trade routes. Authorities had not released further information on the cause of the fire or confirmed the identities of those who died. Investigations into the blaze were continuing at the time of reporting.