Ukrainian Drone Attack Sparks Blaze at Sochi Oil Depot as Both Sides Trade Blows

Sochi, August 3 – A massive fire erupted at an oil depot near Russia’s Black Sea resort city of Sochi overnight after a Ukrainian drone strike, intensifying the already escalating conflict between the two nations. The blaze, ignited by falling debris from a downed drone, prompted the deployment of more than 120 firefighters, according to Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev.

Social media videos captured thick plumes of smoke rising ominously over the area. The fire, though eventually controlled, led Russia’s aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, to halt operations temporarily at Sochi’s airport, a major civilian hub on the Black Sea coast.

Further north, four people were reported injured in a separate Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s Voronezh region. The Russian Defence Ministry stated that its air defences intercepted 93 Ukrainian drones targeting areas over Russian territory and the Black Sea overnight.

In retaliation, Russia continued its missile offensive in southern Ukraine. A residential area in the city of Mykolaiv was struck by a missile, wounding at least seven people, Ukraine’s State Emergency Services confirmed.

Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia had launched 76 drones and seven missiles overnight. Of these, 60 drones and one missile were successfully intercepted. However, the remaining 16 drones and six missiles managed to hit various locations across eight different regions.

These tit-for-tat strikes mark the continuation of a particularly violent week in the war. Just days earlier, a Russian missile and drone assault killed 31 people, including five children, and injured over 150 in one of the deadliest attacks in recent months.

Amid this heightened violence, diplomatic pressure is mounting. US President Donald Trump has given Russian President Vladimir Putin a deadline of August 8 to show tangible progress on peace efforts. Trump also announced that his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will travel to Moscow to advocate for a ceasefire. Failure to comply, the President warned, would result in fresh economic sanctions against Russia.

As the war intensifies, both battlefield developments and high-stakes diplomacy are accelerating in tandem, casting uncertainty over any imminent resolution.