Russian governor reports ‘massive’ fire at Black Sea oil refinery following drone attack

The governor of Russia’s southern Krasnodar region on Tuesday reported a “massive” fire at an oil refinery near the Black Sea coast following a drone strike.

Veniamin Kondratyev said in a statement that the Tuapse oil refinery is experiencing “another serious emergency,” and 164 people are currently working to extinguish the fire at the facility, with 46 pieces of equipment deployed.

“Firefighters are continuously reporting on the situation. The response team will be further expanded soon,” Kondratyev added.

He said an evacuation of residents in buildings nearby the oil refinery is currently underway, and a temporary shelter has been set up at a local school.

The strike is the latest in a series of drone strikes targeting the oil refinery and the port of Tuapse, located on the Black Sea coast, over the past weeks.

Last week, the Krasnodar region’s operational headquarters detected an oil spill caused by an April 16 drone attack.

Ukraine’s General Staff has regularly announced conducting strikes targeting the Tuapse oil refinery, including on April 16, and most recently on Monday.

Regarding the Tuesday attack, the General Staff said it had carried out a second strike on the Tuapse oil refinery "as part of reducing the military-economic potential" of Russia.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed air defenses shot down 186 Ukrainian drones over five regions, including Krasnodar, as well as the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, and Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014.