Tanker Grounded Near Mauritius Has Already Leaked 1,000 Tons Of Oil; May Break Apart Completely
A ship that ran aground off Mauritius leaking tonnes of oil into the ocean is cracking up, the country’s prime minister has said, threatening an even greater ecological and economic disaster for the island nation.
More than 1,000 tonnes of fuel has seeped from the bulk carrier MV Wakashio into the sea off south-east Mauritius, polluting the coral reefs, white-sand beaches and pristine lagoons that lure tourists from around the globe. A further 2,500 tonnes remain onboard the stricken vessel, which ran aground on a reef on 25 July but only started oozing from a crack in the hull in the past week.
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Aerial images show the enormity of the disaster, with huge stretches of crystal-clear seas around the marooned cargo ship stained a deep inky black. Thick muck has coated mangrove forests and unspoiled inlets up and down the coastline, exacting irreparable harm and undoing years of painstaking conservation work, environmental activists say. The slick has already begun drifting further up the coast, fanned along by strong winds and currents.
“I think it’s already too late. If the ship breaks in two, the situation will be out of control,” Vassen Kauppaymuthoo, an oceanographer and environmental engineer, told AFP. “We’re talking about a major disaster that is progressing, and it’s getting more complicated hour by hour.” Pressure is mounting on the government to explain why more was not done in the two weeks since the ship ran aground. The opposition has called for the resignation of the environment and fisheries ministers, while volunteers have ignored an official order to leave the clean-up operation to local authorities, donning rubber gloves to sift through the sludge.
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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/aug/10/damaged-ship-leaking-oil-off-mauritius-could-break-up-says-pm