Crew Rescued as Ukrainian Cargo Ship Sinks in Black Sea

 

The Bulgarian Navy coordinated the rescue of 10 seafarers from a Ukrainian cargo ship that sank in the Black Sea on October 12.  Fears that the ship might have struck a mine, however, were dispelled by the Bulgarians, who said the incident was due to “structural weaknesses” which was supported by a poor maintenance record for the vessel.

The cargo ship Eileen (3,00 dwt) issued a distress call midday on Sunday, October 12, reporting that the vessel was taking on water. According to the Bulgarian Maritime Rescue Coordination Center, the crew said the vessel was listing and that they were unable to control the flooding. The crew determined that it would abandon the vessel into two liferafts.

The ship, which was sailing under the flag of Cameroon, was built in 1993 and appears to have been owned by a company in Ukraine since 2020. In June 2025, the vessel was detained for 15 days after an inspection in Greece, which cited issues including issues with stability instrumentation, fire pumps and piping, emergency lighting, crew training, as well as documentation. While not a detainable issue, the report noted deck corrosion and a structural issue. The vessel was released to proceed to a shipyard for repairs, but the Paris MOU issued a three-month ban citing multiple detentions.

“The breach was definitely not caused by an external source,” Bulgarian Transport and Communications Minister Grozdan Karadzhov is quoted as saying by BNT News Bulgaria. “A Bulgarian helicopter flew over the vessel and inspected it carefully to confirm this. Most likely, the incident was due to a structural weakness.”

The vessel was carrying a cargo of gypsum in bags and bound for Chornomorsk when the incident occurred.

The Bulgarian Navy deployed a helicopter and put its corvette Bordi on standby. A Turkish OSV operating from the port of Filyos was able to reach the scene. The forces were able to locate the two rafts, and the Turkish vessel was able to take the crew aboard. The helicopter was released when it was determined that the crew was in good condition and did not require immediate evacuation.