Russian Officials Say Town’s Air Is Toxic, Days After Strike on Oil Refinery

Officials in southern Russia have warned of dangerous levels of toxins in a Black Sea resort town’s air, ending days of official silence about the aftermath of Ukrainian strikes on an oil refinery there.

The refinery, in the coastal town of Tuapse, has been out of commission since April 16, when a Ukrainian drone attack caused extensive damage to it, resulting in an oil leak. Ukraine’s general staff said the strike had targeted facilities “actively involved in supplying the Russian Army.”

On Monday, another Ukrainian drone hit the refinery, starting a fire that began releasing huge amounts of smoke into the air. Residents of Tuapse soon began documenting a phenomenon called black rain, recently seen after strikes on Iranian fuel depots, in which drops of dark, oily toxins fall from the sky.

But not until late Wednesday night did Russian officials acknowledge the danger. A local emergency task force said in a statement that on Tuesday night, air quality monitoring across Tuapse had shown levels of benzol, xylene and soot that were two to three times the maximum amount to which people can safely be exposed. As of Thursday, the fire at the refinery was still burning.

The task force, which recommended that people in some parts of Tuapse stay home, did not explain why the warning had not been issued sooner. “The situation will get back to normal as soon as the fire is extinguished,” it said, adding that nearly 300 firefighters were trying to put out the blaze.

A trail of black smoke from the fire stretched for hundreds of miles, according to NASA Worldview satellite data from this week.