A Russian drone crashed into a residential apartment building in the Romanian city of Galați early on Friday, causing a fire and injuring two people, Romanian authorities said.

According to Romania’s Ministry of Defence, the drone entered Romanian airspace during a wave of Russian attacks targeting areas in Ukraine near the Romanian border. After it was detected, the Romanian Air Force scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to monitor the situation.

Authorities said the drone was tracked by radar to the southern part of Galați, where it eventually struck the roof of a residential building. The explosion of its payload triggered a fire on the 10th floor of the apartment block.

Emergency services evacuated around 70 residents from the building while firefighters brought the blaze under control. Two people received medical treatment for minor injuries.

Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the incident as a “serious and irresponsible escalation” by the Russian Federation. Bucharest said it had informed the NATO Secretary General and requested the acceleration of anti-drone defence capabilities for Romania.

NATO also reacted to the incident. A spokesperson condemned what was described as “Russia’s recklessness” and said the alliance would continue strengthening its defences against all threats, including drones.

This is the first time since the start of the war in Ukraine that Romanian citizens have been injured as a direct result of a Russian drone. Similar incidents have occurred before, however. In April, another Russian drone caused material damage in Galați, although no injuries were reported.

According to Romania’s Ministry of Defence, drone debris or fragments have been found on Romanian territory on 47 separate occasions since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, including 12 incidents this year alone.

Meanwhile, air raid alerts were activated across Ukraine overnight. Ukrainian officials reported that the port city of Izmail, in the Odesa region, came under Russian drone attack.

At the same time, authorities in the Russian-controlled part of the Donetsk region said three utility workers were killed in a drone strike attributed to Ukraine. A fourth person was seriously injured.

The war between Russia and Ukraine has now continued for more than four years, and the incident in Romania has raised fresh concerns about security along NATO’s eastern border.