Oil slick approaches Putin's luxury palace in Gelendzhik
The beach near the palace – a tunnel leads from the building to the sea – is threatened by the consequences of an environmental disaster resulting from strikes on Tuapse.
Satellite images show a large oil slick moving along the coast towards Gelendzhik and Cape Idokopas. This is where Putin's luxury palace is located. The slick is currently approximately 30 km away from it.
The palace complex, almost 20 thousand square meters in area, with a throne in the house church and an underground ice palace (the striptease hall with a pole was rebuilt after Navalny's investigation), also seems to be falling victim to Ukraine's strikes on the oil refinery and port in Tuapse. The beach near the palace – a tunnel leads from the palace to the sea – is threatened by the consequences of an oil environmental disaster.
The Tuapse oil refinery has been attacked four times by Ukrainian drones in recent weeks. The first strikes on April 16 and 20 caused large fires that were visible even from space. Toxic substances fell with rain on the city, covering cars and streets with oily stains. Experts speak of the largest environmental disaster in the region in recent years. Residents wear masks due to the poisoned air, people from homes near the refinery had to be evacuated. "The city is choking on smoke," one resident wrote on social media.
Experts warn that the pollution could damage local ecosystems and reduce the region's tourist appeal.
Ukraine has claimed responsibility for the strikes as part of its campaign against the Russian energy sector — Russia's main source of revenue.