The cargo ship “Grande Senegal,” owned by the Italian multinational shipping company Grimaldi Lines, reportedly caused immeasurable damage to the coastal ecosystem of the Yucatán Peninsula after running aground on the reef located off the port of Sisal.
In the notice to mariners No. 004/2023, the Harbor Master’s Office of Progreso reported the incident involving the vessel, which was traveling along the Yucatán coastline loaded with containers and vehicles.
According to the report, the ship ran aground in a small area of reefs known as “Bajo de Madagascar,” located off the coast of the “Pueblo Mágico” (Magical Town) of Sisal, part of the municipality of Hunucmá.
The incident was reported by a group of local fishermen from the coastal community of Hunucmá, situated about 65 kilometers west of Mérida.
The fishermen mentioned that they were returning to the Yucatán port when they spotted the vessel motionless. As they approached, they noticed that part of the hull was stuck on the reef.
According to the port authorities who arrived at the scene, the ship was en route from Altamira, Tamaulipas, to Germany at the time of the accident, which occurred around 4 pm on Monday.
The statement, signed by Frigate Captain Luis Hermann González Carrete, Navigation Chief of the Mexican Navy (Semar), pointed out that “the status of the crew is unknown” and that the grounded ship “does not pose a danger to larger vessels as it is outside the navigation channel area.”
The website MarineTraffic still indicates that the 210-meter-long and 32-meter-wide vessel is grounded, but it is accompanied by a deep-sea tugboat, which would be working on its release.
It is worth noting that the “Bajo de Madagascar” is an area with rich marine biodiversity and a depth of approximately 7 meters, serving as a refuge for hundreds of marine species.
As of now, the Ministry of Environment (Semarnat) and the Office of Environmental Protection (Profepa) have not provided information about the damages caused by the incident.
However, the fishermen from Sisal demanded that authorities at all levels of government hold the company accountable for the potential damages caused to the reef.
TYT Newsroom