While specialists intervene on the scene, many of the evacuated employees say they received little explanation and were only told to leave the area immediately.
Images captured during the evacuation show employees and workers leaving the area following orders from the authorities. “We were told to move away from the area,” said one of the evacuated employees. Several people said they received no clear explanation regarding the nature of the danger. “Absolutely nothing. We were just told to evacuate the area,” said another worker when asked if the authorities had provided details about the incident.
Although official information was still limited at the time of the evacuation, many in the vicinity had heard that it was a maritime drone. “It seems to be a drone, but we didn’t see it,” said one of the employees. Others were trying to understand what the intervention teams were going to do.
“We were told to evacuate the area because operations are starting. We don’t know exactly what operations. It’s probably going to be towed out of the port,” said a witness.
Maximum level RO-ALERT message
Meanwhile, residents and people near the Port of Constanța received a maximum level RO-ALERT message. In the notification sent by the Constanța Emergency Situations Inspectorate, the population was warned to evacuate the area within a radius of one kilometer around the port and to take shelter in cellars or civil protection shelters. In the absence of such a space, people were advised to stay inside buildings, away from windows and exterior walls.
Safety perimeter and complex intervention
As the operation progressed, authorities expanded security measures. According to information from the field, the entire affected area was secured and a safety perimeter was established. Police, gendarmes, intervention teams and intelligence specialists were mobilized on the scene. Several employees were warned that the evacuation covers the entire operational area near the incident. „The entire area must be evacuated,” the authorities’ representatives told the people in the perimeter.
The Ministry of National Defense and the other institutions involved continue their checks to establish precisely the circumstances in which the maritime drone arrived in the port area and the reasons that led to the explosion. In the meantime, access to the secured perimeter remains restricted, and the operations carried out by specialized teams continue under increased security measures.