The Russian tanker SIG was damaged by a naval drone attack while approaching the Kerch Strait, according to Russia’s Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transportation. The agency said the attack occurred on August 4 at 11:20 p.m. local time. The ship’s crew was not injured in the attack and the ship remains afloat, says the agency.
Russia’s Marine Rescue Coordination Center told state news agency TASS that the tanker’s engine room had been damaged and that two tugboats were working to tow the ship. The Center also said that the crew was not injured in the attack.
Pro-war Russian Telegram channel Rybar reported that the tanker’s crew was alive but the engine room had been flooded. Russian “war correspondent” Yuri Kotenok wrote on his Telegram channel that the tanker was damaged by a Ukrainian naval drone. TASS also wrote that the vessel was damaged by “an attack from the Ukrainian side.”
According to BBC News Ukraine, the attack on Russia’s SIG tanker was a joint operation between Ukraine’s Security Service and Navy. Ukraine has not officially claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Telegram channel Baza posted a photo from inside the damaged tanker. The channel reported that most of those on board the vessel were injured by broken glass.