30.09.2025 13:42
Fishermen in the Çarşıbaşı district of Trabzon discovered an unmanned maritime vehicle loaded with 300 kg of explosives in the sea. While gendarmerie and coast guard teams took security measures, a special team was requested from Istanbul to examine the maritime vehicle, which was moved to a safe area at the port. It is being assessed that the vehicle may belong to Ukraine, and the Trabzon Governorship issued a written statement regarding the matter.
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Fishermen fishing by boat off the coast of Trabzon's Çarşıbaşı district noticed an unmanned underwater vehicle loaded with 300 kg of explosives on the surface of the sea during the night. The fishermen towed the vehicle to shore with their boat. Upon arriving at Yoroz Port, the fishermen reported the situation to the Coast Guard teams.
The teams established a security cordon for the unidentified underwater vehicle and closed the port's entrances and exits. While security measures were taken in the surrounding area, a special team was requested from Istanbul to examine the underwater vehicle. Initial investigations suggested that the unmanned underwater vehicle might belong to Ukraine, and it was reported that the expert team was on its way to the district.
"IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS A BOMB INSIDE"
Yoroz Port Cooperative President İsmail Yılmaz stated, "At 00:00, my colleague on duty here called me. He said that our fisherman found a boat and brought it to the port, and that the Coast Guard had been notified and it was taken for inspection. They left it at the dock thinking there was a dangerous substance inside. I arrived at the port at 02:00. The bomb squad came and conducted an inspection. They closed the port. It was determined that there was a bomb inside. This is an unmanned underwater vehicle," he said.
"WE THOUGHT IT WAS A FIBER FISHING BOAT"
Halil İbrahim Bozok, the owner of Bozokoğlu Fishing, one of those who found the unmanned underwater vehicle while fishing in Trabzon's Çarşıbaşı district, said, "We had set out for anchovy fishing. A object was detected by our boat's radar 800 meters away off the Akçakale area. Thinking it could be a small fishing boat, we approached it. We said, 'Let's take it on board.' When we lifted it with a crane, we saw that it resembled a military boat. We then notified the Coast Guard teams and brought the sunken boat onto our ship to take it to Yoroz Fishing Harbor. We handed it over to the Coast Guard. When we first saw it, we thought it was a fiber fishing boat. At that moment, we thought there could be any object inside, but since there was no explosion while lifting it, we brought it ashore, hanging on the side of our boat," he said.
"WE REGRETTED IT, GOD PROTECTED US"
Bozok said, "There was no problem, but what we did was wrong. We should have called the teams to intervene in the sea. We said, 'Instead of handing it over to the Coast Guard due to weather conditions, let's take it ourselves and bring it out.' It turned out there was 300 kilograms of explosive material inside. We regretted it, but it was too late; God protected us. We brought it to the shore and handed it over to the teams. From that moment on, they requested the evacuation of all ships in the fishing harbor. Later, we continued our fishing activities. When morning came, we heard that there was a bomb inside," he said. Meanwhile, moments when fishermen towed the unmanned underwater vehicle with ropes to the port were captured on a mobile phone camera.
STATEMENT FROM THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE
The Trabzon Governor's Office issued a written statement regarding the unmanned underwater vehicle found by fishermen fishing by boat in the Çarşıbaşı district. The statement said, "It has been determined that a foreign-origin object was caught in the nets of our fishermen fishing off the coast of Yoroz Port in Trabzon's Çarşıbaşı district. The mentioned object was brought to the port, necessary security measures were taken, and the Naval Forces Command (SAS) teams and other security units were notified. The relevant object has been safely secured for examination by expert teams, and a detailed technical examination and investigation process is ongoing. We kindly request our citizens to report any similar situations to security units without intervening," it was stated.
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