Final siphoning ops for Oriental Mindoro oil spill to take 20-30 days — task force

DISASTER AT SEA An expert team from the Japan Disaster Relief helps the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in containing the oil spill from the sunken fuel tanker, MT Princess Empress, off the waters of Oriental Mindoro in this photo taken on March 16, 2023. —PCG PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The siphoning operations that are part of the final phase of the clean up of the oil spill, which began in Oriental Mindoro, will last for 20-30 days, a task force said Thursday.

The dynamic support vessel from Singapore arrived in Oriental Mindoro on May 28, to siphon what remains of the estimated 900,000 liters of industrial fuel oil.

“The vessel will be used for oil extraction operations, transferring of oily waste to a tanker, and disposal of the collected oil,” said the National Task Force on Oil Spill Management in a statement. “The entire siphoning operation is expected to cover 20-30 days.”

READ: PCG: Sunken oil tanker in Oriental Mindoro now half-empty

To date, the Philippine Coast Guard reported that out of the 79.33 kilometers of affected coastlines, 66.433 or 83.74 percent had been acceptably cleaned while only 12.89 kms or 16.26 percent remained for clean-up.

This spillage incident covered 262 villages in Oriental Mindoro, Palawan, Antique, and Batangas, affecting 200,244 people including 27,513 fishermen.

The oil spill ensued after MT Princess Empress sank on February 28, in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro after experiencing engine trouble due to rough sea condition.

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