Falling drone debris causes fire at oil terminal in Russia's Novorossiysk
Incident Overview and Ongoing Drone Attacks on Russian Oil Facilities
Fire at Novorossiysk Oil Terminal
May 23 (Reuters) - Falling debris from drones triggered a fire at an oil terminal in Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiysk and two people were injured, officials said early on Saturday.
The General Headquarters of southern Krasnodar Region said in a post on Telegram that several technical and administrative buildings had caught fire. Debris had also fallen on the facility's oil storage terminal, it said.
Emergency Response and Injuries
The headquarters said emergency services were working at the scene. The injured men had been in the street when the drones hit the port and they were being treated in hospital.
Unofficial Russian and Ukrainian Telegram channels posted video footage of what they described as a fire in the port area.
Other Drone-Related Incidents in Southern Russia
Damage in Anapa
The General Headquarters said drones had also damaged private houses farther north in the port city of Anapa.
Drone Attacks in Perm Region
Perm regional governor Dmitry Makhonin said later on Saturday that a regional industrial facility was targeted by Ukrainian drones, but the drones were shot down en route and caused no damage.
Makhonin, whose region has recently come under repeated Ukrainian attacks, did not specify which facility was targeted. Earlier this month Reuters reported that the Perm oil refinery had completely halted processing after a drone strike in early May.
Drone Attacks in Ryazan Region
Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov also said local air defences had downed several Ukrainian drones, with debris falling on the territory of an industrial site. He did not identify the facility or provide details on any damage.
Impact on Ryazan Oil Refinery
The Ryazan oil refinery, which accounts for almost 5% of the country's total refining volumes, stopped processing after a drone attack last week.
Wider Drone Attack Patterns and Ukrainian Strategy
Scale of Drone Attacks
According to Russia's Defence Ministry, air defences shot down 365 drones over 15 regions, as well as over the Azov and Black seas, between 2000 Moscow time (1700 GMT) on Friday and 0900 Moscow time on Saturday.
Ukrainian Drone Attack Strategy
Ukraine has intensified medium- and long-range drone attacks in recent months, focusing on oil facilities and aiming to disrupt industry revenue that helps Moscow fund the war with Ukraine. Some attacks in central Russia and the Ural Mountains have been at least 1,500 km (900 miles) from Ukraine's border.
Recent Attack on Yaroslavl Oil Refinery
Ukrainian forces on Friday also attacked a Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl, some 700 km from the border.
Ukrainian Claims of Successful Strikes
The Ukrainian Defence Ministry said on X on Friday that Ukraine had hit 11 Russian oil facilities this month as of May 21, including Kirishi, one of Russia's largest refineries.
(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Nia Williams, Tom Hogue, Tomasz Janowski and Susan Fenton)
