On February 22, three Taiwanese fishing vessels ran aground near Pointe-aux-Sables, Mauritus, a few miles to the west of Port Louis.
It is estimated that around 120 tonnes of diesel fuel is aboard the three vessels, with salvors now prioritizing its removal.
The Mauritius Ports Authority has also activated a spill response plan to address the risk of pollution, and boom deployment efforts have started.
The vessels are located in pounding surf, which may make the pollution containment and lightering difficult, but so far no signs of a spill have been reported.
The vessel Wen Hang Dar 168 was the first to go aground, followed shortly by the Foo Man Yu Feng 1 and the Foo Man Yu Weng 168, which both ran onto a sandbank at nearby Bain-des-Dames.
Wen Hang Dar’s operator, Iqbal Moulan, told local media that all the crew were rescued by helicopter, and were delivered in good health to a local hotel. The crew of the second and third vessels abandoned ship into the water and were rescued by good samaritans in small craft.
The cause of the grounding incidents is still under investigation.
