Tuapse Inferno Triggers Lingering Environmental Crisis as Oil Spills Hit Sea and Town

A major oil refinery fire in Tuapse re-ignited, sending toxic smoke and hundreds to thousands of tons of petroleum products into the air and Black Sea, coating streets with ‘oil rain,’ killing wildlife, and threatening drinking water. Officials say the threat is under control, but satellite images show vast oil slicks and continued contamination, implying long-term ecological and health risks and a slow cleanup hampered by political and wartime constraints.