Damaged Russian ships spilled an estimated 3,700 tons of oil in Kerch Strait, state media says

MOSCOW — An estimated 3,700 tons of low-grade fuel oil has spilled into the Kerch Strait after two Russian ships were seriously damaged by stormy weather, Russian state media reported Monday.

The two ships, the Volgoneft 239 and the Volgoneft 212, were transporting roughly 9,200 tons of mazut, a heavy, low-quality oil product. Social media footage from the scene showed a black liquid rising among the waves.

Preliminary estimates say that 3,700 tons of mazut leaked into the sea, Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti reported, citing an unnamed source. In a statement, the leader of Russia’s nearby Krasnodar region, Gov. Veniamin Kondratev, said that the oil had not yet reached the shore.

An emergency rescue operation was launched Sunday after the Volgoneft-212 tanker ran aground and had its bow torn away in storm conditions, Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry said. One sailor in the 13-man crew died, officials said.

A second tanker, the Volgoneft-239, was also left damaged and adrift with 14 crewmembers on board. It later ran aground 80 meters from shore, close to the port of Taman in Russia’s Krasnodar region, from where the sailors were later rescued.

Russian officials confirmed the oil spill Sunday, but said that experts were still working to assess its full impact and extent.

The Kerch Strait separates the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia and is an important global shipping route, providing passage from the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea.

It has also been a key point of conflict between Russia and Ukraine after Moscow annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. In 2016, Ukraine took Moscow to the Permanent Court of Arbitration, where it accused Russia of trying to seize control of the area illegally. In 2021, Russia closed the strait for several months.