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Number of victims of strike on Chernomorneftegaz drilling rigs rises to five

The rescue operation is underway, Crimean Senator Olga Kovitidi noted

SIMFEROPOL, June 20. /TASS/. The number of victims of the Ukrainian strike on the drilling rigs of Chernomorneftegaz has increased to five people, it is reported that two people have received burns, another person has shrapnel wounds in the leg, Crimean Senator Olga Kovitidi told TASS.

"The rescue operation is underway, we have five wounded. We evacuated some people, [now looking for] seven more. [Of the injured] two have burns and one has a shrapnel wound in his leg," Kovitidi said.

Earlier, the Crimean emergency services reported that the strike was carried out by the Ukrainian side on the Chernomorneftegaz drilling rigs, which operates in the field near Odessa. The Chernomorneftegaz company is exploiting several fields, including the Odessa field. Its drilling rigs stand in the sea, far from the tourist areas of the region and at a distance from the coast.

The Crimean-based Chernomorneftegaz is an enterprise with 100% state participation. The company’s main activity is the production of natural gas and gas condensate, it has a license for the exploration and production of hydrocarbons. The company performs activities such as mining and processing minerals, pilot development of mineral deposits of national and local importance; drilling wells for prospecting mineral resources, groundwater and performance of hydrogeological works in the search. It also conducts the evaluation and exploration of mineral deposits. Chernomorneftegaz operates hydrocarbon deposits on the shelf of the Black and Azov Seas and on the Crimean peninsula’s shore.