A drone struck the top of a residential building in the central area of Galați, eastern Romania, on the night of May 28, injuring two people and triggering the evacuation of around 70 residents, according to Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations (DSU), cited by G4Media.

The incident is the most serious known drone-related event on Romanian territory since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

According to the authorities, the drone exploded after impact, causing a fire in one of the apartments. Romania’s domestic intelligence service SRI conducted investigations at the scene, with the DSU stating that the drone’s entire payload detonated.

Lieutenant Colonel Cătălin Sion, representative of the Galați Emergency Situations Inspectorate, said four people were affected. Two residents suffered minor injuries and were transported to hospital, while two others received medical assistance on site after suffering panic attacks, Agerpres reported.

DSU head Raed Arafat told Digi24 that an emergency SMS alert had been sent to residents minutes before the drone hit the building.

“There were no fatalities. An apartment was affected by fire. Two stairwells, an elevator structure and five cars were damaged following this incident,” Arafat said.

Residents remained evacuated while authorities continued structural and safety checks on the building.

Romania’s Ministry of National Defence stated that the drone entered Romanian airspace and was tracked by radar systems towards the southern area of Galați before crashing into the apartment block.

Two F-16 fighter jets were scrambled during the alert and received authorisation to engage aerial targets if necessary, the ministry added.

Romanian defence officials said that since the start of the war in Ukraine, more than 90 attacks have been recorded near Romania’s border.

“In 28 cases, Russian drones were reported to have entered national airspace. In 47 cases, drone fragments were identified on Romanian territory,” the ministry stated.