Russian drone strikes overnight into Friday hit three foreign commercial vessels navigating Ukraine's Black Sea maritime corridor and knocked out power to thousands of households in the southern Odessa region, regional and national officials confirmed.
Odessa regional military administration head Oleh Kiper said Ukrainian air defenses destroyed the majority of incoming targets, but could not prevent all impacts. Three merchant vessels — sailing under the flags of Vanuatu, the Comoros Islands, and Panama — were struck by Russian drones while transiting the humanitarian shipping corridor. Fires broke out aboard all three ships but were extinguished by their crews.
Two crew members aboard the Vanuatu-flagged vessel sustained injuries. Both were foreign nationals; neither required hospitalization, and medical assistance was provided on-site. The ship was subsequently towed to port for repairs.
Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister for Reconstruction Oleksii Kuleba confirmed the strikes via Telegram, emphasizing that despite the attacks, the maritime corridor remained operational.
"Ukraine maintains the functioning of the maritime corridor, and ports and crews continue to ensure the movement of cargo and global food security," Kuleba said.
Ukraine's Naval Forces provided additional detail, noting that the Vanuatu-flagged ship was bound for Turkey from the Odessa region when it was struck. The two injured crew members were evacuated by Ukrainian Navy vessels and transported to a medical facility.
Beyond the strikes at sea, the overnight attack caused power outages affecting approximately 4,000 consumers in the south of the Odessa region, following damage to electricity transmission lines. No casualties were reported on land. Energy workers were deployed immediately to restore power, Kiper said.
