Filipino seafarer killed in Ukraine-bound tanker strike off Romania – reports

MANILA, Philippines — A seafarer reported by Romanian media to be Filipino has died after a strike hit a Ukraine-bound gas tanker in the Black Sea.

The seafarer, who is yet to be identified, was one of three crew members wounded when the Gas Lisbon, a Liberian-flagged tanker carrying propane to a Ukrainian port, was struck outside Romanian territorial waters overnight to Tuesday.

A representative of Romania's health ministry told Agence France Presse that the seafarer who died was a 46-year-old man who suffered burns covering 10% of his body and damage to his airways.

Romanian media reported that the man was from the Philippines, but the health ministry could not confirm his nationality.

The nationality and condition of the two other wounded crew members have also not been confirmed.

The tanker had 17 crew members and was carrying more than 3,790 tonnes of propane. It had departed from Alexandria, Egypt and was headed to the Ukrainian port of Reni.

Ukraine blamed Russia for the strike, calling it a deliberate act of "terror."

Romanian President Nicusor Dan called the strike a "serious incident" that was "most likely part of the Russian Federation's illegal war of aggression against Ukraine."

Russia has not responded to the allegations.

Romanian authorities were still working Thursday to determine who hit the tanker and what weapon was used.

Emergency services said Wednesday that although the fire on the ship no longer had open flames, high temperatures still made it unsafe to access the vessel.

The Black Sea has been a regular theater of confrontation between Ukraine and Russia since the Kremlin's full-scale invasion began in 2022. — reports from Agence France Presse