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'Thousands of species at risk' as oil continues to spill from ship off coast of Mauritius

The incident has sparked fears among green campaigners of an environmental disaster: AFP via Getty Images
The incident has sparked fears among green campaigners of an environmental disaster: AFP via Getty Images

'Thousands of species' are at risk after a ship that struck a barrier reef off the coast of Mauritius continues to spill 4,000 tonnes of oil .

The government has declared an environmental emergency and France said it was sending help from nearby Reunion island.

Satellite images showed a dark slick spreading in the turquoise waters near wetlands that the government called “very sensitive”.

Environmental group Greenpeace Africa warned that tons of diesel and oil are leaking into the water. It shared video showing Mauritius residents, to chants of “One, two, three,” shoving the makeshift oil barriers into the sea, while crowds of children and adults hurried to make more.

Bystanders look at MV Wakashio bulk carrier that had run aground and from which oil is leaking near Blue Bay Marine Park in south-east Mauritius (L'Express Maurice/AFP via Getty)
Bystanders look at MV Wakashio bulk carrier that had run aground and from which oil is leaking near Blue Bay Marine Park in south-east Mauritius (L'Express Maurice/AFP via Getty)

“Thousands of species around the pristine lagoons of Blue Bay, Pointe d’Esny and Mahebourg are at risk of drowning in a sea of pollution, with dire consequences for Mauritius’ economy, food security and health,” said Greenpeace’s climate and energy manager, Happy Khambule.

“When biodiversity is in peril, there is urgency to act,” French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted Saturday.

Wildlife workers and volunteers ferried dozens of baby tortoises and rare plants from an island near the spill, Ile aux Aigrettes, to the mainland as fears grew that worsening weather on Sunday could tear the Japanese-owned ship apart along its cracked hull.

A French statement from Reunion on Saturday said a military transport aircraft was carrying pollution control equipment to Mauritius and a navy vessel with additional material would set sail for the island nation.

MV Wakashio, belonged to a Japanese company but was Panamanian-flagged (L'Express Maurice/AFP via Getty)
MV Wakashio, belonged to a Japanese company but was Panamanian-flagged (L'Express Maurice/AFP via Getty)

Residents and environmentalists alike questioned why authorities did not act more quickly after the ship ran aground on July 25 on a reef.

Mauritius says the ship, the MV Wakashio, was carrying nearly 4,000 tons of fuel.

“That’s the big question,” Jean Hugues Gardenne, of the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, told The Associated Press.

“Why that ship has been sitting for long on that coral reef and nothing being done.”

This is the country’s first oil spill, he said, adding that perhaps no-one expected the ship to break apart.

A containment boom collecting oil leaking from the MV Wakashio (AP)
A containment boom collecting oil leaking from the MV Wakashio (AP)

For days, residents peered out at the precariously tilted ship as a salvage team arrived and began to work, but ocean waves kept battering the ship.

“They just hit and hit and hit,” Mr Gardenne said.

Cracks in the hull were detected a few days ago and the salvage team was quickly evacuated. Some 400 sea booms were deployed to contain the spill, but they were not enough.

Prime minister Pravind Jugnauth says the spill “represents a danger” for the country of 1.3 million people that relies heavily on tourism and has been been hit hard by the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, which has restricted travel worldwide.

A satellite image shows the bulk carrier ship MV Wakashio and its oil spill (MAXAR via REUTERS)
A satellite image shows the bulk carrier ship MV Wakashio and its oil spill (MAXAR via REUTERS)

“Our country doesn’t have the skills and expertise to refloat stranded ships,” he said Friday.

Bad weather has made it impossible to act, and “I worry what could happen Sunday when the weather deteriorates”.

Heavy winds are expected to push the oil slick even farther along the mainland’s shore.

A Mauritius Meteorological Services forecast for Sunday has advised that seas will be rough with swells beyond the reefs and “ventures in the open seas are not advised”.

Videos posted online have shown oily waters lapping at the mainland, and a man running a stick across the water’s surface then lifting it, dripping black goo. The Mauritian Wildlife Foundation is working to free trapped seabirds and turtles.