Dramatic helicopter footage has emerged showing the San Marino-flagged chemical tanker Wine Trader heavily damaged after being struck by two drones in Romanian territorial waters in the Black Sea. The attack occurred near Sulina on October 15, 2026, with explosions reported around 07:00 local time. Visible fire damage and destruction tore through the ship’s bridge and upper decks. Of the twelve crew members on board, four were initially confirmed safe or reachable while seven or eight remain missing. Four crew members are still aboard the vessel as Romanian authorities struggle to reach them. Rough seas have blocked helicopters and boats from completing the rescue operation so far.

The incident forms part of a recent wave of suspected drone attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea, including a nearby strike involving the tanker Yara J. Russian drone activity near Snake Island has raised fresh concerns among NATO members about repeated breaches of Romanian airspace and territorial waters. Officials are treating the Wine Trader attack as a serious escalation against commercial shipping in the region. The combination of fire damage, missing crew, and hazardous weather has turned the response into a complex and urgent operation. Authorities continue working to extract the remaining sailors and secure the burning vessel while investigating the origin of the drones. The images of the stricken tanker have intensified questions about the growing threat to civilian shipping in these contested waters.