Two merchant ships were attacked by aerial and sea drones in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea on 6 October 2026, leaving Alfa Watan sunk and Able damaged by fire.

The Bulgarian government said the attack occurred during the night about 70 nautical miles east of Byala. Prime Minister Rumen Radev said one vessel sank while the other caught fire and described the attack on commercial shipping as a violation of international and maritime law.

The Bulgarian News Agency identified the vessels as the Togo-flagged general cargo ship Alfa Watan and the Palau-flagged general cargo ship Able. Alfa Watan sank east of the Bulgarian coast and its crew remained unaccounted for. All 18 crew members aboard Able were rescued after the vessel was struck and caught fire.

Bulgaria has not identified the origin of the drones. Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said wreckage or other evidence would be needed to establish who operated them, adding that authorities could not confirm whether they were Russian or Ukrainian.

The Bulgarian incident came a day after a fatal maritime accident involving Royad Mammadov in the Black Sea outside Romania’s territorial waters. The Romanian Naval Authority said its Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Constanța was alerted at around 11:00 am on 5 October 2026 after a fire broke out aboard the vessel. Rescue vessels including SAR Apollo, SAR Artemis and SAR Ares were mobilised.

Romania’s Interior Ministry later said 11 crew members were rescued after the vessel sank, while two people died. Romanian authorities did not confirm the cause of the fire.

Reuters reported that Royad Mammadov was sailing under the flag of St Kitts and Nevis and had last called at the Ukrainian port of Izmail before heading toward Ravenna, Italy. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the vessel was carrying corn and had been struck by two Russian drones. Russia had not immediately commented on the incident, while Romania had not attributed the fire to a drone attack.

Zelenskyy also blamed Russia for the attacks on the two ships off Bulgaria and said Ukrainian forces had not been operating in the area. The Associated Press reported that Bulgarian authorities were continuing to investigate the origin of the drones.

Bulgarian National Television reported that Able’s 18 crew members were initially taken aboard the Bulgarian-flagged ro-ro/passenger ferry Dioscuria. One seafarer suffered serious burns and another sustained a head injury before the injured crew members were transported toward Varna for medical treatment.

Maritime.bg identified Alfa Watan as IMO 7510884 and Able as IMO 9001136. The maritime publication also reported that both were general cargo vessels and that the search for Alfa Watan’s crew was continuing following the sinking.