A drone struck a 10-storey residential building in the southeastern Romanian city of Galati early on Friday 29 May during a large-scale Russian attack on Ukrainian ports on the Danube. The ensuing explosion and fire injured at least two people and forced authorities to evacuate about 70 residents.
According to Romania’s emergency services, the drone crashed onto the roof of the apartment building and its entire explosive payload detonated. A fire broke out in a top-floor apartment and damaged other parts of the building.
A woman and her child were taken to hospital with minor injuries, while two other people were treated on site for panic attacks. Deputy Interior Minister Raed Arafat said two stairwells and at least five parked vehicles had been damaged.
First Strike on a Populated Area
The incident has drawn particular attention because it was the first confirmed case of a drone hitting a densely populated area in Romania and injuring civilians in connection with the war in Ukraine.
Romania, a member of both NATO and the European Union, shares a 650 km border with Ukraine. Since Russia began attacking Ukrainian Danube ports, Russian drones have breached its airspace 28 times and drone debris has been recovered on Romanian territory 47 times, according to the defense ministry.
During Friday’s attack, the Romanian army scrambled two F-16 fighter jets and a military helicopter to monitor the situation. The pilots were authorized to shoot down any drones that posed a threat. Residents of the border counties of Galati, Braila and Tulcea received warnings advising them to take shelter.
Galati had previously been hit in April, when a drone damaged an electricity pole and a household annex, prompting officials to temporarily evacuate people in the area. The drone was later retrieved so that its unexploded payload could be detonated in a remote location.
Romanian law allows drones to be shot down even in peacetime if they pose a threat to lives or property, but the country has not yet taken that step.
In a separate incident, authorities found another drone without an explosive charge near the village of Basesti in Maramures county in northwestern Romania. Its origin is under investigation. Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities reported a new attack on the strategic port of Izmail in the Odesa region, one of the main targets of Russian air strikes.
(reuters, max)