Two Russian tankers have suffered significant damage in the Kerch Strait due to severe weather conditions and have already sunk, Russian media outlets Mash and Baza reported on Dec. 15.
Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry also reported that the tankers, Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239, had been damaged.
Both vessels were carrying approximately 4,000 tons of fuel oil on board each, according to Baza.
The Volgoneft 212 has 13 crew members aboard, while the Volgoneft 239 has 14. Both crews have requested assistance.
In response, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry stated that a Mi-8 helicopter with rescuers was deployed and that 13 sailors were evacuated from the Volgoneft-212, but one of them had died.
The ministry has primarily focused on ongoing rescue operations, offering few details on the current condition of the tankers.
According to eyewitness accounts reported by Mash, the Volgoneft-212 was cut in half by waves near the coast of Kerch, while the Volgoneft-139 sank within minutes after waves created a hole in the hull, causing a crack that split the ship in two.
Mash reported that both tankers were built around 50 years ago and were hastily converted in the 1990s from full-fledged tankers to "river-sea" class vessels.
The rushed modifications included cutting the ships in half, discarding the center, and welding the bow and stern together, leaving a large seam that failed under the impact of powerful waves. This seam ultimately split apart, contributing to the vessels’ sinking.
Baza reported that investigators have opened two criminal cases following the sinking of the tankers, though this has not been confirmed by official sources.
Russian-occupied Crimea is home to the Russian Black Sea Fleet but successful Ukrainian strikes on Crimea have forced Moscow to relocate much of its naval forces from the peninsula to the Russian port city of Novorossiysk.
Ukraine has repeatedly struck Russia's vessels since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. Around 30% of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet is lost or disabled, according to the Ukrainian military.
Nate Ostiller
