Tanker Grace Romavictor Runs Aground in Turkey Following Storm and Earlier Drone Attack
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The product tanker Grace Romavictor, abandoned after a drone attack, ran aground on October 14 in Çilingöz Nature Park, in the Çatalca district northwest of Istanbul. The towline connecting it to the tug Athletic snapped during a severe storm, and the crew of that vessel was unable to regain control of the tanker.
The Tow to İğneada
The tanker had departed on October 12 in ballast and without crew on board, under tow by the Cameroon-flagged tug Athletic, bound for the port of İğneada for repairs. On October 14, at around 1:30 p.m. local time, bad weather caused the towline to break, leaving the Grace Romavictor adrift off Çatalca. The tug's captain informed vessel traffic services that he would seek shelter at the port of İğneada. The Turkish Coast Guard was alerted at 1:33 p.m., arrived on scene and, after an initial inspection, ruled out fuel leaks or marine pollution.
Background: The Drone Attack
The Liberian-flagged Grace Romavictor, built in 2012, had been struck by a Ukrainian drone on August 31 off Novorossiysk in the Black Sea while being managed from Dubai; the crew was unharmed and was evacuated. According to Maritime Executive, the vessel has a length overall of 183 meters and a deadweight of 49,990 tons, while marinetraffic_maritimenews specified a length overall of 183.3 meters, a beam of 32.2 meters and a gross tonnage of 29,875 tons.
Rescue Operation
The Istanbul Regional Port Authority has begun refloating operations to remove the vessel from the area where it ran aground. So far no oil spills have been reported, and the hull is believed to be largely empty.
Context in the Black Sea
The incident adds to other cases of vessels damaged in attacks that ended up adrift or stranded in the region, such as the bulk carrier Emil off Bulgaria and the tanker Kairos, towed last December after suffering leaks. In parallel, the Liberian-flagged crude oil tanker BANDA, damaged in a drone attack on September 2, also ran aground off Kısırkaya, in Istanbul's Sarıyer district, amid a string of drone attacks recorded between October 6 and 15 against merchant vessels in the Black Sea, which included the cases of ABLE, ALFA WATAN, HS Dignity, Chelsea-3, Wine Trader and Yara J.
