Social media users called the situation in Tuapse an environmental disaster.

Authorities report normal air quality in Tuapse amid a fire at an oil depot in the port. Meanwhile, city residents are publicizing the aftermath of the "oil rain," declaring an environmental disaster.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," a fire broke out at an oil terminal in Tuapse following a drone attack on the night of April 20. On the evening of April 20, local residents reported that "oil rain" had fallen in the city. Environmentalists warned Tuapse residents that the "oil rain" and smoke from the oil depot fire pose a health hazard.

After the rain in Tuapse on April 20, residents noticed black balls remaining on exposed surfaces. Photos posted on social media show combustion products deposited on cars and plant leaves.

According to Tuapse residents, an oily residue remained on the ground. New birds stained with oil products began to be found along the coast on April 20.

“I was walking by the sea in Tuapse and saw something I can't get out of my head. Birds… three of them, all covered in oil. Completely. They're sitting right on the shore, not flying away, not hiding. Simply because they can't. It's as if they've given up. Their eyes are alive, but they have no strength at all. Their feathers are stuck together, they can't fly or move normally. Some don't even react when you get close,” wrote VKontakte user Alexandra Fotograf in the group “MY TUAPSE.”

Another member of the group posted a photo of children's hands with black, oily stains. "The child played in the yard for 10 minutes, and his hands were covered in fuel oil," she wrote.

Despite the ongoing fire at the oil depot in the port, the Tuapse Municipal District administration reported that Rospotrebnadzor (the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing) found no excess of maximum permissible concentrations of harmful substances in the air. Residents don't trust these estimates.

"What's happening in the city right now can easily be called an environmental disaster. So the question is, why haven't measures been taken to protect the population yet? Environmental quality assessments show that we're doing well, but how can that be if people are returning home covered in fuel oil?" "People are breathing something unknown, animals are dying," wrote an anonymous user of the community.

Veronika Chursanova, a Stavropol resident who arrived in Tuapse on April 21, shared her impressions on her VKontakte page. "The fire, seemingly blocking half the sky, is a terrifying sight. I want to leave, run away, get as far away as possible. And then news came about the oil spill. It's so sad," she wrote.