Naval drone explodes at Romania's Constanta port

A naval drone exploded on Friday in Romania's Black Sea port of Constanta while authorities were inspecting the device after it had been brought ashore, local media reported.

The Romanian Intelligence Service, the Coast Guard, and the Ministry of National Defense had secured and isolated the area, and specialists were assessing and attempting to make the object safe when the explosion occurred, according to Antena 3 CNN.

The Romanian Department for Emergency Situations (DSU) said the explosion occurred at 10.28 am local time (0728GMT) at berth 78 after authorities had been alerted earlier in the morning to the presence of the device in the port area.

DSU chief Raed Arafat said the area had been evacuated as a precaution and that no casualties had been reported. Authorities deployed helicopters to inspect the coastline amid concerns that other maritime drones could be present in the area.

Citing military sources, Romanian broadcaster Digi24 reported that the device was a Magura V5 maritime drone used by Ukrainian forces. The reports also said four other explosive-laden boats had been found off the Constanta coast, although authorities have not officially confirmed the information.

They also stressed that the device was not part of the Romanian military's equipment and had not been involved in recent exercises organized by the Defense Ministry.

President Nicusor Dan said he was informed of the incident while traveling to Montenegro for the EU-Western Balkans summit and praised security services for acting swiftly. He said the area had been evacuated before the explosion and that there were no indications of casualties.

The drone had reportedly been recovered from the sea and transported to the port before detonating during the inspection process.

Romanian authorities have not yet disclosed the drone's origin or how it reached the country's shores.