Kremlin Keeps Silent On Tuapse Ecological Disaster
- 27.04.2026, 15:46
"Oil rains" and toxic smog didn't make it onto the federal airwaves.
Federal TV channels were silent about the environmental disaster in Tuapse. Russians were not told about the leakage of oil products into rivers and the Black Sea, nor about the release of toxic substances after fires at the terminal, nor about the "oil rains" that led to the mass death of birds, writes "We can explain". Instead, the programs Vesti Nedeli, Voskresnoe Vremya and Itogi Nedeli discussed the "lull" in the US-Iran conflict, the shooting in Washington, China's reaction to EU sanctions, and the state of the war in Ukraine.
The talk show "Sunday Evening with Vladimir Solovyov" focused on drone attacks that reached Yekaterinburg for the first time since the war began, and the evacuation of US President Donald Trump due to an assassination attempt during a dinner with journalists, while the Tuapse disaster was not aired. Olga Skabeeva and Yevgeny Popov's 60 Minutes program was devoted to the fighting in the Middle East, including the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. They also discussed the West's sanctions policy and EU financial aid for Ukraine.
The NTV talk show "Mesto Vstrechi" also ignored the environmental disaster in Tuapse. Instead, the guests focused on Germany's military strategy, NATO problems and domestic economic difficulties, including Russians' growing debt load and bankruptcies among young people.
The Tuapse emergency has so far not been commented on in any way by Russian President Vladimir Putin either. His press secretary Dmitri Peskov has also never mentioned it at briefings.
In April, Ukrainian drones attacked the Tuapse oil terminal twice, on the 16th and 20th. As a result, large fires broke out on the territory of the facility. The terminal was completely extinguished only by the evening of April 24. At the same time, the smog from the fire managed to cover almost the entire Black Sea coast of Russia, including Sochi and Anapa, and also reached Stavropol and Armavir.
In some areas there was "oil rain", and concentrations of benzene, xylene and soot in the air exceeded the norm twice, reported Rospotrebnadzor. Local residents complained of a heavy odor and breathing problems. On the threat of mass poisoning of Russians and the risk of cancer due to toxic smoke warned one of the developers of "Novichok", chemist Vil Mirzayanov.
In addition, petroleum products got into rivers and the Black Sea, where a slick of 10 thousand square meters was formed. Dead dolphins were found on the beach of Sochi. The death of fish was also recorded. Ecologist Evgeny Vitishko called what is happening in Krasnodar Krai "the largest environmental disaster of the region" in recent times, which will have a negative impact on the local environment for several years.