Mauritius declares emergency over oil spill, as Japanese shipowner apologises
- The bulk carrier MV Wakashio ran aground off the Indian Ocean island two weeks ago and is polluting the turquoise waters at Blue Bay marine park
- Mauritius has appealed to France for help, while Japan’s Nagashiki Shipping said it would do what it can to pump out the remaining oil on the ship
The prime minister of Mauritius has declared a state of environmental emergency and appealed to France for urgent assistance as oil from a grounded cargo ship spilled unabated into the island nation’s protected waters.
Rough seas have hampered efforts to stop fuel leaking from the bulk carrier MV Wakashio, which ran aground two weeks ago, and is polluting pristine waters in an ecologically critical marine area off the southeast coast.
“A state of environmental emergency has been declared,” Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth posted on his Twitter account late on Friday.
The tanker, belonging to a Japanese company but Panamanian-flagged, was carrying 3,800 tonnes of fuel when it struck a reef at Pointe d’Esny, an internationally-listed conservation site near the turquoise waters of the Blue Bay marine park.
The environment ministry announced this week that oil had begun seeping from the hull, as volunteers rushed to the coast to prepare for the worst.