Feodosia, Crimea – A jet fire that erupted at a major oil terminal in the port city of Feodosia in Russian-annexed Crimea has been extinguished, five days after Ukrainian missile strikes targeted the facility.
The announcement was made on Friday by Feodosia’s Russian-installed Mayor, Igor Tkachenko, who stated that the situation is now fully under control.
“As of 8 a.m., there’s no jet fire on the territory of the oil terminal,” Tkachenko posted on Telegram, adding that “the situation has stabilized and is fully under control.”
Despite the progress, he indicated that emergency services and local municipal enterprises would continue conducting emergency recovery operations until the incident is completely resolved.
The statement followed reports of a fresh “release of combustible materials” overnight. Crimea’s Russian-installed Governor, Sergei Aksyonov, acknowledged the release after several residents reported hearing an explosion.
However, Tkachenko reassured nearby residents that air quality posed no imminent threat, despite widespread complaints of nausea, headaches, and coughing in the aftermath of the fire.
According to the regional consumer protection watchdog, elevated levels of sulfur dioxide were detected in the air near the flames.
The fire’s origin dates back to Monday, when Ukraine’s military announced a successful missile strike on the Feodosia offshore oil terminal. Ukrainian forces targeted the terminal, which is the largest on the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea.
The strike caused the flames to spread across more than 2,500 square meters of the facility, prompting the evacuation of over 1,100 people from the surrounding areas.
The blaze caused significant concerns among local residents and emergency services, with visible plumes of smoke filling the sky and flames blazing for several days.
The full extent of the damage remains unclear, and authorities have yet to specify the impact on the oil terminal’s operations and fuel supplies.
The targeted oil terminal has attracted media attention for its reported connections to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s university friend, Viktor Khmarin.
Khmarin was identified as the beneficiary of a company that acquired the terminal in 2019 following its nationalization by Russia’s occupational authorities.
The facility plays a strategic role in Crimea’s energy supply, with the region having been under Russian control since it was annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
The missile strike on the terminal comes amid ongoing hostilities between Ukraine and Russia, with the Crimean peninsula frequently targeted due to its strategic importance in the conflict.
Ukrainian forces have intensified attacks on key infrastructure in the region in recent months, aiming to disrupt Russian supply lines and military logistics.
Feodosia’s authorities have pledged to monitor air quality closely and address any potential health hazards associated with the fire’s aftermath.
Emergency workers continue to assess the site, while recovery efforts are expected to proceed over the coming days.
While the flames have been extinguished, the incident has reignited concerns about the security of energy infrastructure in the conflict zone and highlighted the ongoing risks faced by civilians caught in the crossfire.