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Flames Rise From Tanker Off Sochi After Possible Sea Drone Impact, Video
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A large fire erupted in the sea off the coast of Sochi, Russia, on October 6, with flames visible in footage shared online.
Local Telegram channels and media reports suggest that a vessel carrying oil or petroleum products caught fire, as reported by ASTRA. There have been no official statements yet regarding the cause of the fire.
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The vessel involved in the fire has been identified as the Liberia-flagged crude oil tanker AFRAMAX RIO (IMO: 9273844). While not currently sanctioned by the EU or Western allies, the ship was added to Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) sanctions list on February 12, 2026, alongside 90 other vessels identified as part of Russia’s shadow fleet, according to ASTRA.
Owned by Marshall Islands-registered RIO ENTERPRISES SA, the tanker operates through Singapore-based Navig8 Group and Greek management firms, including Hellenic Tankers Co Ltd, ASTRA reported.
The vessel, capable of carrying up to 100,000 metric tons of crude oil (700,000–750,000 barrels), has a documented history between 2024 and 2026 of transporting Russian petroleum from ports such as Ust-Luga, Novorossiysk, and Taman to international markets including India, Singapore, and Saudi Arabia.
According to vessel tracking platform MarineTraffic, the ship departed the port of Tuzla, Turkey, on September 11, 2026, making stops in Samsun before reaching the port of Constanta, Romania, on September 22.
AIS tracking data registered its position approximately 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) off the Sochi coastline shortly before the fire broke out.
The incident follows an overnight drone attack on the Moscow region on October 6, which led to a fire at the Volodarska oil storage facility.
The facility is the largest fuel depot in the region and supplies fuel to local airports. Open-source intelligence analysts confirmed the location of the fire using video footage.
Earlier, on September 6, the Russian-flagged cargo ship Lady Mariia was reportedly struck 12 times by drones in the Mediterranean Sea while allegedly transporting Iranian weapons and armored vehicles to Russia.
The sanctioned vessel had departed Algeria, though Ukraine’s involvement and details of the cargo were not independently confirmed.
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