Wakashio Breaks Apart With 166 Tons Of Fuel Oil Still Aboard

The condition of the MV Wakashio was worsening early on Saturday and it split by the afternoon, the Mauritius National Crisis Committee said.

“At around 4.30pm, a major detachment of the vessel’s forward section was observed,” it said in a statement. “On the basis of the experts’ advice, the towing plan is being implemented.”

The vessel struck a coral reef on July 25, spilling about 1,000 tonnes of fuel oil and endangering corals, fish, and other marine life in what some scientists have called the country’s worst ecological disaster.

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