Three Russian Shahed drones hit Romania, causing fire, sources say

Russian drones struck targets in Romania early Wednesday morning, July 24, during Moscow’s attack on port infrastructure in Ukraine’s Odessa region, informed sources in the Ukrainian security and defense sector exclusively told the Kyiv Post.

Three Shahed drones have been recorded crashing and causing fires in Romania.

Explosions were reported from suicide drone strikes near the village of Nikoletel, 7 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.

The crew of an IAR-330 helicopter from the 57th Mikhail Kogalniceanu airbase confirmed the downing of the drones. After the explosions, the helicopter pilot reported a fire caused by the drone strikes.

Romanian border guards detected the approaching drones at 2:10 a.m., media reports said. Meanwhile, the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations issued an alert for the northern part of Tulcea County, informing residents of the possibility of objects falling from the airspace in areas adjacent to the Ukrainian border.

After the drones fell, residents reported hearing explosions to local emergency services. Romania’s air strike alert was raised at 3:46 a.m., and emergency services 112 received 10 calls to the emergency number 112 due to the sound of explosions.

Russian forces attacked the city of Izmail in the Odessa region with drones early on the morning of July 24. Local authorities reported damage to port infrastructure and a five-story residential building.