The Mauritian ship Tresta Star, in difficulty off Saint-Philippe around 8 pm this Thursday, February 3rd, ran aground. It is located at the level of Tremblet at the foot of the volcano. The 11 crew members on board were all rescued. Towing maneuvers were deployed at first, but without success. The tanker was sailing empty, so there was no risk of marine pollution.
In the early evening, towing manoeuvres were quickly implemented. The sea was very rough, which complicated the rescue operation. The rescue operations were led by the French Navy under the coordination of the CROSS.
The priority was to rescue the 11 sailors involved as quickly as possible. Given the state of the sea, the huge waves generated by the cyclone Batsirai and the proximity of the coast, the risk of the vessel running aground was very high. Despite attempts to tow the vessel, it did run aground at Tremblet. Fortunately, the 11 sailors were rescued.
The tanker “is sailing empty, so at this stage there is no risk of serious marine oil pollution,” reassures the Ministry of Overseas France Sébastien Lecornu on Twitter. As of 8pm, the minister informed of the ongoing towing and salvage operations off Saint-Philippe.
While the sea is raging because of the cyclone Batsirai, the Tresta Star, a Mauritian-flagged oil tanker, found itself in difficulty around 8 pm this Thursday, February 3. Reacting on his Facebook page, Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of Overseas France, said: the Mauritian ship #TrestaStar is in difficulty and may run aground in the coming hours off Reunion. I am closely following the situation with the @Prefet974. Our efforts are currently focused on the rescue of the crew.
The TRESTA STAR (IMO: 9869629) is an Oil Products Tanker built in 2019 (3 years ago) and sailing under the Mauritius flag.
Its load capacity is 2924 t DWT and its current draft is 3.9 meters. Its overall length (LOA) is 74 meters and its width is 16.02 meters.
