ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTER

Japanese Cargo Ship Leaking Tons of Oil Splits in Two Off Pristine Waters of Mauritius

The Japanese cargo ship has been leaking oil since it ran aground in July near two environmentally protected marine ecosystems and the Blue Bay Marine Park reserve.

A Japanese cargo ship that has already leaked tons of oil into the pristine Indian Ocean waters off Mauritius has split in two, threatening two ecological parks and the country’s popular seaside mangrove forests. The ship was carrying 3,800 tons of Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil and 200 tons of diesel oil when it ran aground in late July, according to CNN. It is estimated that more than 1,000 tons has already leaked into the waters. Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth had already declared a state of environmental emergency when the ship split in two late Saturday. “We are in a situation of environmental crisis,” Mauritius’ environmental minister Kavy Ramano said. The ship was on its way from China to Brazil when it ran aground on a reef last month.