Ukraine strikes Russian port of Tuapse again as environment crisis deepens
Written by: Mark Trevelyan and Yuliia Dysa
May 1 (Reuters) – Ukrainian drones attacked Russia’s Black Sea port of Tuapse on Friday for the fourth time in 16 days, as authorities struggled to cope with a mounting environmental disaster caused by clouds of toxic black smoke and oil leaking into the sea.
Ukraine’s SBU security service said drones had once again hit the sea port and refinery that makes Tuapse a major hub for Russian oil exports.
Reuters was unable to confirm the latest attack on the refinery, which has been hit and set on fire at least twice since April 16 in previous attacks that halted production.
Local Russian officials said a major operation was underway to extinguish the fire at the sea port.
OIL LEAKING ON THE COASTLINE
The attacks cast dense dark clouds over the town and caused oil spills along the coastline, ruining the popular resort’s beaches.
They are part of what President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says is a Ukrainian strategy to disrupt Russia’s huge energy industry and keep key facilities offline for as long as possible.
In X, he shared that these operations have cut at least $7 billion from the energy revenues Russia uses to finance the war since the beginning of the year.
It was not possible to independently verify this figure. On the other hand, Moscow will receive a windfall in oil profits from rising global prices due to the war between the United States, Israel and Iran.
More than four years into their conflict, Russia and Ukraine have been attacking each other from the air, while the front lines on the battlefield remain largely static.
Throughout the war, Russia frequently bombed power plants and the electrical grid in Ukraine. A Russian drone strike overnight damaged port infrastructure in Ukraine’s southern Odesa region and injured two people, the regional governor said. A daytime drone attack on Ternopil, in Ukraine’s far west, hit industrial facilities and injured 10 people, the mayor said.
WARNINGS TO LIVING PEOPLE
Tuapse residents were warned to stay inside, keep their windows closed and drink only bottled water as authorities tried to foster a sense of solidarity.
“Today, in these difficult days, we are overcoming difficulties and solving important problems together. And I believe we will succeed!” said the head of the region, Sergei Boiko, in a message congratulating residents on the May 1 public holiday.
Less than three hours later, it issued a renewed drone warning telling people to shelter in windowless rooms.
The town has been under a state of emergency since Tuesday, when an attack sparked a massive fire at the refinery that was not extinguished until two days later.
Authorities said Friday that they have so far cleared more than 13,300 cubic meters of fuel oil and contaminated soil along the coast.
State television showed a reporter standing on a blackened beach using a shovel to show how deep the oozing filth had seeped.
In an online chat room, some locals expressed anger and despair, criticizing what they saw as a lack of effective action by central authorities in Moscow.
“Who wants to get cancer? Who wants their children to get sick? Or maybe someone wants to burn to death in their bed as a result of a drone explosion?” a woman wrote.
Another stated that the pollution would continue for years.
“This will affect people’s health, the health of our children, the environment and the future of the town. All of this could have been prevented. But once again someone’s ambitions and decisions have proven to be more important than our safety.”
(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan in London and Yuliia Dysa in Kiev; Additional reporting by Alessandra Prentice and Ron Popeski; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
