The oil tanker sank in Manila Bay early Thursday (July 25) after encountering huge waves and the coast guard is now assessing the vessel for a leak that could cause a major spill that could reach the capital Manila, Philippine's coast guard said. – AP
MANILA: Authorities are moving to contain the ensuing oil spill from the submerged Motor Tanker (MT) Terra Nova at the portion of Manila Bay off Limay municipality in Bataan province.
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesperson Rear Admiral Armand Balilo said Thursday (July 25) that if all 1.4 million litres of fuel the vessel was carrying would seep into the sea, the oil spill may reach the shores of the country’s capital, Manila, and be the worst oil spill in the country’s history.
Currently, Balilo said that only the “working fuel” of the ship or the fuel being used by the vessel to run has leaked. He added that the working fuel spill was only “minimal.”
MT Terra Nova was en route to Iloilo to deliver the fuel when it “capsized and eventually submerged” east of Lamao Point in Limay municipality at around 1:10am on Thursday.
“Of course, there is a big danger that Manila would be affected, even the shorelines of Manila because it is within Manila Bay,” Balilo said in an online briefing when asked what would happen if all 1.4 million litres of fuel [spilled] into the sea.
He noted that their contingency plan includes such a worst-case situation.
“So far, the oil spill is minimal; probably, it’s the fuel used by the ship,” Balilo also said. “I have no details as to how much is the working fuel, but it’s very minimal.”
Balilo said the PCG’s marine environmental protection personnel have also been mobilised to prevent an oil slick.
The PCG dispatched personnel to Navotas, Bulacan, and Pampanga “to monitor and prepare for a possible oil spill,” following the sinking of the Philippine-flagged MT Terra Nova. Meanwhile, its BRP Melchora Aquino has been deployed to conduct search and rescue operations.
Balilo said 16 of the 17 crew on board had been rescued and PCG personnel aboard the vessel continued to look for the missing crew member.
The biggest oil spill in the country’s history thus far happened on February 28, 2023, when MT Princess Empress, carrying 800,000 litres of industrial fuel, sank off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
The clearing of oil slicks, which reached as far as Palawan and Verde Island Passage shores in Batangas, took a few months. Thousands of fishermen also lost their livelihood due to the incident.
The Office of Civil Defense said before that the government shelled out almost 1 billion pesos (US$54 million) to respond to the Mindoro oil spill.
Balilo said that if all 1.4 litres of industrial fuel carried by MT Terra Nova leaked, it would beat the Oriental Mindoro incident and become the worst oil spill in the country’s history.
“We are racing against time, and we are doing our best to contain it,” he said. – Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
