Ukrainian drones set oil depots ablaze in two Russian regions, strike two tankers near Taganrog

A drone strike set fire to a storage tank at the Tverskaya Neftebaza facility in Tver, Governor Vitaly Korolev said. Firefighters contained the blaze, and there were no casualties among residents or facility personnel, according to preliminary reports.

The depot is a subsidiary of Surgutneftegas, the independent Telegram channel Astra reported. It supplies gasoline and fuel to a network of 52 gas stations and handles wholesale deliveries across the Tver region. Images published before the attack show the depot had been fitted with anti-drone netting.

A Ukrainian drone struck an industrial facility in the hamlet of Vyazniki in Stavropol Krai, sparking a fire, regional head Vladimir Vladimirov said, without identifying the facility.

Vladimirov initially said the fire posed no risk to nearby residential buildings, but later reported that the blaze had intensified and reached tanks containing flammable materials. Residents closest to the facility were evacuated. There were no casualties, according to preliminary reports.

Astra also reported that an oil depot was burning in Stavropol Krai. Astra and the Ukrainian monitoring Telegram channel Exilenova+ initially reported, citing photos and videos from eyewitnesses, that the fire had broken out at the Lukoil-Yugneftprodukt depot in Mikhailovsk, roughly a kilometer from the Vyazniki depot. Both outlets later clarified that it was the Vyazniki depot that was burning.

Rostov Governor Yury Slyusar said Ukrainian drones struck two tankers in the Gulf of Taganrog for the second consecutive day. Both vessels sustained damage and caught fire. There were no casualties, and the crews were evacuated.

Vladimir Saldo, head of the Russian occupation administration in Ukraine’s Kherson region, said every district in Russian-controlled territory had been left fully or partially without power. Ukrainian forces have been striking electrical substations and other infrastructure in Russian-occupied territory with drones.

Russia’s Defense Ministry reported that by the morning of July 9, Russian air defense forces had intercepted and destroyed 73 Ukrainian drones over 11 regions of Russia, occupied Crimea, and the Sea of Azov.

Ukrainian drones have been striking oil facilities in Russia nearly every day in recent months. Every one of the country’s largest refineries has come under attack. The strikes have worsened a fuel crisis in Russia.