Seafarer dies after strike on Ukraine-bound gas tanker in Black Sea

One of three seafarers wounded in a strike on a propane tanker bound for Ukraine has died in a Romanian hospital, Romania's health ministry told AFP on Thursday.

The Gas Lisbon tanker, which flies the Liberian flag, was struck outside Romanian territorial waters overnight to Tuesday, according to Romanian authorities. The strike wounded three crew members and led to an evacuation.

Ukraine blamed Russia for the incident, which it said happened about 20 nautical miles off the Romanian coast, and described it as a deliberate act of "terror". Romanian President Nicusor Dan called it a serious incident that was most likely connected to Russia's war against Ukraine. Russia has not responded to the allegations.

A Romanian health ministry representative said the seafarer who died was a 46-year-old man who had burns on 10 percent of his body and injuries to his airways. Romanian media reported that he was from the Philippines, but the ministry could not confirm his nationality.

The nationality and condition of the other two wounded crew members have not been confirmed.

Romanian authorities were still trying on Thursday to establish who hit the tanker and what weapon was involved. Emergency services said on Wednesday that the fire on the ship no longer had open flames, but high temperatures still made it unsafe to access the vessel.

The ship had 17 crew members and was carrying more than 3,790 tonnes of propane. It had left Alexandria in Egypt and was heading to Reni in Ukraine.

The Black Sea has been a regular area of confrontation between Ukraine and Russia since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.