Oil fire rips through Russia’s Borskaya shipyard

A serious fire broke out on 23 December at the Borskaya Ship Repair Company in Nizhny Novgorod, western Russia, after a fuel leak ignited on a crane vessel during routine operations, according to the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. The commercial yard specialises in the maintenance of river-sea combined transport vessels and supports a large part of regional inland and coastal shipping.
Firefighters arrived quickly and used foam to tackle the blaze, which involved burning fuel and spread across about 93m2 of the quay area. Images released by the emergency services showed crews working in close proximity to the crane vessel as they brought the fire under control.
Eyewitnesses reported that an explosion occurred shortly before the fire took hold, although officials have not confirmed the cause of the blast or whether it came from the crane’s fuel system. Local authorities have not yet detailed the level of damage to vessels or to shipyard infrastructure, and no official figures on repair costs or downtime have been released.
The incident has focused attention on safety procedures at shiprepair facilities handling fuelled equipment. Investigators are examining the sequence of events, while yard managers assess how the disruption will affect ongoing maintenance and delivery schedules.