2 Pinoy seafarers killed, 12 injured in Black Sea drone attacks

Two Filipino seafarers were killed while 12 others were injured during drone attacks in the Black Sea in southern Ukraine, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Monday.

“We are sad to report that there have been two fatalities out of these attacks, 12 injured and one missing, underscoring the increasing volatile security environment in the Black Sea,” Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said in a press conference.

The first seafarer was killed on July 6, while the second was killed on Sunday, July 19.

According to a Reuters report, Ukrainian officials said on Sunday that Russian forces struck an international cargo vessel in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine's southern city of Odesa, killing at least five crew members.

“The attacks have largely targeted bulk carriers and oil product or tankers with incidents occurring in and or near the ports and anchorages in southern Ukraine. Most ships sustained damage from unmanned aerial vehicle, UAV or drone attacks while alongside, meaning nakadikit sa puerto [at the port], at anchorage or shortly after departure,” Cacdac said.

A total of 139 Filipino seafarers were on the nine ships affected by the drone attacks in the Black Sea, of whom 124 are safe and unharmed.

Of the injured Filipino seafarers, four have already been repatriated, while the remaining eight are undergoing medical recovery.

Cacdac said the DMW and the manning agencies are coordinating with the families of the affected seafarers to assist them.

The DMW is also looking into the accountability of the manning agencies, with possible penalties in place once they are found to be negligent. — Mariel Celine Serquiña/BM, GMA News