# Giant bulker Wakashio aground on reef off Mauritius **URL:** \ **Category:** Marine Incidents\ **Created:** [July 27, 2020, 3:40pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171 "2020-07-27T15:40:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ombugge](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/ombugge/32/11217_2.png) [@ombugge](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ombugge)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 3:40pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/1 "2020-07-27T15:40:08Z")
The giant Bulk carrier Wakashio run aground in Mauritius on the way from China to Brasil: > **[Giant bulk carrier runs aground on reef off Mauritius - Splash 247](https://splash247.com/giant-bulk-carrier-runs-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/)** > > A giant bulk carrier ran aground on a reef off Mauritius on Saturday evening, despite warnings from the local coast guard that the ship was travelling too near the shore.  Booms are in place, and salvage companies are on standby to handle the... Everybody asleep?? ---
**Author:** ![fogmachine](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/fogmachine/32/69135_2.png) [@fogmachine](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/fogmachine)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 6:21pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/2 "2020-07-27T18:21:32Z")
Hey, who put that island with the international airport right in front of us? ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 6:43pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/3 "2020-07-27T18:43:00Z")
There is an image of its route from the link below, it was going in a south west direction but has now ended up pointing in a north west direction. ![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/gcaptain_maritime_forum/original/2X/5/5daed12c11b4b20714e4fe042ef72418b2ae3db6.jpeg) > **[Capesize bulk carrier aground, Indian ocean](https://www.fleetmon.com/maritime-news/2020/30373/vlcc-aground-indian-ocean/)** > > Capesize bulk carrier WAKASHIO ran aground off Pointe Desny, southeast Mauritius, at around 1600 UTC Jul 25. Bulk carrier is en route ... ---
**Author:** ![fogmachine](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/fogmachine/32/69135_2.png) [@fogmachine](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/fogmachine)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 7:18pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/4 "2020-07-27T19:18:25Z")
Sometimes one comes up on a dark coastline at night with poor visibility. Sometimes it’s something else. ![Wakashio](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/gcaptain_maritime_forum/original/2X/4/4c104ea5d35241284069b7e2aec971ba8e64f017.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Skipper1964](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/skipper1964/32/12045_2.png) [@Skipper1964](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Skipper1964)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2020, 6:24am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/5 "2020-07-28T06:24:01Z")
If the intended passage plan is to pass near Point Desny, the Master should have exercised precautions like giving allowance just in case something might go wrong… Looks like this ship is being manned by fishermen…lol… ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2020, 10:48am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/6 "2020-07-28T10:48:36Z")
The comments under the splash article are entertaining, Mene Pedersen probably has the fairest one: > Lynching, sadly seems to be the easiest response to a Maritime incident. Blaming the Master , 2nd Officer and the ECDIS hopefully by those who are commenting is being done after their own thorough investigation. Prejudices and stigmatization should best be kept to oneself so that the investigators can get down to the root cause. Remember the unfortunate ships crew are seafarers like you once were! Major incidents these days seem to be subjected to a lot of trial by social media, rather than waiting for all the facts. ---
**Author:** ![Steamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Steamer](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Steamer)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2020, 2:11pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/7 "2020-07-28T14:11:28Z")
Maybe this is reason enough to suggest such blame is not misplaced: "The coast guard had tried in vain to contact the ship’s captain for an hour on Saturday evening to warn that its routing looked dangerous. _When finally coast guard officials got through to the master, the captain insisted the planned route was safe._ A few minutes later, however, the ship radioed local authorities to say the vessel had grounded on a reef. " ---
**Author:** ![ombugge](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/ombugge/32/11217_2.png) [@ombugge](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ombugge)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 7:53pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/8 "2020-07-29T19:53:30Z")
Salvage tugs and teams are on the way: > **[Salvage team deployed to refloat bulk carrier off Mauritius - Splash 247](https://splash247.com/salvage-team-deployed-to-refloat-bulk-carrier-off-mauritius/)** > > A salvage team has been deployed to refloat the 203,130 dwt bulk carrier after the ship grounded in the southeast of Mauritius on Saturday when sailing from China to Brazil. According to Mauritius’s Ministry of Environment, a tugboat with oil spill... ---
**Author:** ![ExMariner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e274bd/32.png) [@ExMariner](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ExMariner)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 3:02pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/9 "2020-08-03T15:02:29Z")
From the photograph, the bulker clearly looks to be in ballast (most likely on her way to load iron ore from Brazil). Even in a heavy ballast condition, her deepest draft would be under 10/12 meters. There must be some very strange circumstances that would compel a cape-sized bulker on that voyage to be in that location. ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 3:19pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/10 "2020-08-03T15:19:26Z")
I think it is still stuck on the reef, the problem seems to be they haven’t been able to get any suitable tugs there quickly, there was too much swell for the VB Cartier which is a harbor tug, they have a PSV on scene called the Stanford Hawk, but what use is a tug without a winch… It seems like the Boka Expedition is arriving from Oman tomorrow and the Boka Summit is arriving on the 8th of August from Sri Lanka according to marine traffic, are least they have winches… they’re both 200t bollard pull. > **[Mauritius: Grounding of MV Wakashio At Pointe d'Esny - Salvage Team and First...](https://allafrica.com/stories/202008030936.html)** > > Press Release - The salvage team and the first tug, PSV Stanford Hawk, are currently in Mauritius since July 30 for the salvage exercise of the Wakashio Ship of the Okiyo Maritime Corporation / Nagashiki Shipping Co. Ltd, that has been grounded on 25... > **[Pointe d'Esny : Les 10 membres de l'équipage du Wakashio en quarantaine](https://www.zinfos-moris.com/Pointe-d-Esny-Les-10-membres-de-l-equipage-du-Wakashio-en-quarantaine_a16476.html)** > > Le navire est coincé depuis une semaine sur les récifs de Pointe d’Esny. Des experts élaborent déjà le plan de renflouage du vraquier panaméen.  Une enquête a été menée à Pointe-D'Esny par les membres du ministère de l'Environnement. Selon les... ---
**Author:** ![ombugge](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/ombugge/32/11217_2.png) [@ombugge](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ombugge)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 3:39pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/11 "2020-08-03T15:39:47Z")
The Boka Expedition and Summit are large AHTs w/200+ t.BP. Normally used for long range towing: ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/gcaptain_maritime_forum/original/3X/f/5/f5d81a87bd88385e5f32dbcf4986eaeb6f172afc.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![ExMariner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e274bd/32.png) [@ExMariner](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ExMariner)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 3:47pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/12 "2020-08-03T15:47:30Z")
Thanks, @spork for the update. This is easily the master’s worst nightmare. The ship is aground at a place thousand miles from nowhere. There will be very few services available to conduct an underwater inspection before even making a determination whether to pull the ship off the rocks without the danger of further flooding. Then carrying out underwater repairs to make her fit, under conditions of class, to proceed to a drydock big enough to service a cape sized bulker (at a reasonable price!). It is funny that I still wake up in cold sweat sometimes, twenty years after leaving the industry and working in investment banking, that I got a call from the OOW informing that the ship has just hit a rock and he is trying to figure out which one. I say it is funny because, it is a nice feeling to wake up and realize that it was only a bad dream. ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2020, 7:25pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/13 "2020-08-06T19:25:56Z")
Things have taken a significant turn for the worse. There is a mistake in the gcaptain article, the Stanford Hawk is a PSV not a tug. > Smit Salvage has been contracted to respond along with local contractor CELERO. AIS ship tracking data shows two tugs, Stanford Hawk and BOKA Expedition, currently on scene. > **[Ship STANFORD HAWK (Offshore Supply Ship) Registered in St Vincent Grenadines...](https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:468501/mmsi:376955000/imo:9658159/vessel:STANFORD_HAWK)** > > Vessel STANFORD HAWK is a Offshore Supply Ship, Registered in St Vincent Grenadines. Discover the vessel's particulars, including capacity, machinery, photos and ownership. Get the details of the current Voyage of STANFORD HAWK including Position,... > **[Wakashio Breached: Oil Leaks from Grounded Bulk Carrier in Mauritius, Police...](https://gcaptain.com/wakashio-breached-oil-leaks-from-grounded-bulk-carrier-in-mauritius-police-investigation-launched/)** > > The Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius is suddenly facing an environmental disaster after the grounded Wakashio began leaking bunker fuel. The MV Wakashio ran aground off Pointe d’Esny, on... ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 3:19pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/14 "2020-08-07T15:19:55Z")
It was aground for 11 days before it started leaking bunkers, you would have thought they would have tried to offload most of the bunkers in that time, maybe it was too shallow to get another vessel close enough, but they could just have gotten a really long fuel hose. The Stanford Hawk PSV was standing-by near it not long after it went aground, maybe they could have discharge the bunkers to it. Would be tricky to pump out more bunkers now if there are tanks there are tanks that haven’t ruptured yet. ---
**Author:** ![SeaEagle](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/seaeagle/32/17788_2.png) [@SeaEagle](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/SeaEagle)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 3:24pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/15 "2020-08-07T15:24:34Z")
Am sad for the area affected by this boondoggle. Not sure what happened, I wasn’t there. If there was ever a case to be prosecuted, sure sounds like one. ---
**Author:** ![ombugge](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/ombugge/32/11217_2.png) [@ombugge](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/ombugge)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/16 "2020-08-07T16:02:43Z")
From Splash 24/7 today; > **[Mauritius faces up to its worst environmental crisis as oil slick snakes...](https://splash247.com/mauritius-faces-up-to-its-worst-environmental-crisis-as-oil-slick-snakes-around-the-south-of-the-island/)** > > An environmental crisis is playing out in the Indian Ocean where a grounded Panamanian-flagged newcastlemax is spewing bunker fuel onto the pristine shores of southeastern Mauritius. The 203,000 dwt bulk carrier, which ran aground on a reef July 26,... Have not seen anything about when she turned around over 90 degrees, from bow onto the reef to broad side on.(??) What caused her to turn, the weather or attempt to go full astern to free her? ---
**Author:** ![spork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@spork](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/spork)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 10:21pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/17 "2020-08-07T22:21:10Z")
The below video seems to have been recorded by a Filipino Wakashio crew member in 2012, the title aged badly… He seems to record what looks like the OOW correcting charts on watch, not a good sign if that’s what it is. Check out the comments below the video: [![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/gcaptain_maritime_forum/original/3X/c/1/c10afc2ca121cb19027d6b664e94c27b30add31e.jpeg "MV WAKASHIO THE UNSINKABLE") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtEva5N4EsQ) ---
**Author:** ![New3M](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/new3m/32/394_2.png) [@New3M](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/New3M)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 10:53pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/18 "2020-08-07T22:53:25Z")
> [@spork](#): > > He seems to record what looks like the OOW correcting charts on watch, not a good sign if that’s what it is. Do you know how little looking out the window is done on a regular basis? ---
**Author:** ![SeaEagle](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/seaeagle/32/17788_2.png) [@SeaEagle](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/SeaEagle)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 10:58pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/19 "2020-08-07T22:58:15Z")
Not enough apparently. ---
**Author:** ![tugsailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@tugsailor](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/tugsailor)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2020, 12:40am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171/20 "2020-08-08T00:40:09Z")
Chart corrections are more of a navigational hazard than they are worth. Even more so when the watch officer is alone in the wheelhouse standing watch 12 hours a day. [Next page](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/giant-bulker-wakashio-aground-on-reef-off-mauritius/56171.md?page=2)