Ukrainian drones hammer Russia's Tuapse oil refinery for 4th time, tanks ablaze again, military confirms
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Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Ukrainian drones hit an oil refinery in Tuapse, Krasnodar Krai, overnight on May 1, marking the fourth strike on the site in a month, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the General Staff confirmed.
The May 1 attack on the oil facility was carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine's "Alpha" Special Operations Center in cooperation with military intelligence (HUR) and the Unmanned Systems Forces.
The attack sparked a fire in oil tanks, sending a column of black smoke above the oil refinery, according to the SBU.
The extent of the damage is still being assessed, Ukraine's General Staff said.
Photos and videos of a fourth attack on the refinery and marine terminal emerged on social media in the early hours of May 1, with residents reporting explosions in the area, according to the Telegram monitoring channel Exilenova-Plus.
Local residents told the Russian Telegram channel Shot that air defense units were active over Tuapse, and that at least 10 drones had already been downed. Explosions and active gunfire were reported and restrictions were introduced at regional airports.
The Krasnodar Krai Operational Headquarters later reported that a drone attack had sparked a fire at the marine terminal in Tuapse.
Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that a total of 141 drones were shot down across the country overnight.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims at the time of publication.
Ukraine previously confirmed attacks on Tuapse on April 16, 20, and 28. Following the third attack, a state of emergency was declared in the municipal district.
Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry claimed on April 29 that it had finally extinguished the fires in Tuapse caused by the wave of strikes. But just a day later, a fresh attack reignited the blaze at the facility.
The Tuapse oil refinery, located on the Black Sea Coast in Krasnodar Krai, processes about 12 million tons of oil annually. Ukraine has waged a relentless strike campaign against the facility over the past two weeks, threatening the resort town at the start of the tourist season.
After the first strike, local emergency services managed to contain the fire and even fully extinguish it at the marine terminal, but it continued to burn at storage tank sites, intensifying with each subsequent attack.
The refinery was most recently struck on April 28, prolonging the multi-day fires. On April 29, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said open burning had been extinguished in Tuapse.
As a result of Ukraine's first three attacks on the refinery, 24 storage tanks were destroyed and four more damaged, while a crude oil processing facility was also hit.
The environmental fallout — including airborne petroleum byproducts and oil spills on city streets — has made the once attractive tourist destination unsafe for visitors, though Russian President Vladimir Putin has downplayed the threat to Tuapse.
Ukrainian forces have ramped up their assault on Russia's oil industry, which both fuels the Russian military and funds the Kremlin's war chest.
According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil infrastructure reached a four-month high in April, with at least 21 attacks on refineries, pipelines, and oil assets at sea recorded.
The attacks reduced Russia's average refinery capacity to 4.69 million barrels per day, the lowest level since December 2009, Bloomberg reported.
Amid the uptick in Ukrainian drone attacks, Russia scaled back its Victory Day celebrations in Moscow and Putin proposed a temporary truce during the May 9 holiday. Ukraine has responded with its own proposal for a long-term ceasefire.
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