A Philippine-flagged tanker carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel capsizes and sinks in waters off Bataan province early Thursday morning (July 25, 2024), according to authorities. INQUIRER FILES
MANILA, Philippines — A Philippine-flagged tanker carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel “capsized and eventually submerged” in waters off Bataan province early Thursday morning, authorities said.
Strong winds and high waves were hampering response efforts, Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista told a briefing.
“We were able to rescue 16 out of 17 crew, one is missing,” Bautista said.
Four of the crew members were receiving medical treatment.
READ: Oil spill from a shipyard in Aklan flows into nearby rivers
Authorities sought to contain a spill stretching several kilometers, as of this writing.
In an initial report, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said Motor Tanker (MT) Terra Nova capsized and eventually submerged nearly seven kilometers (4.3 miles) east of Lamao Point in Limay municipality at around 1:10 a.m.
It also said a search and rescue operation was underway for the missing crew member.
The PCG likewise said it was investigating “if there was an existing weather disturbance in the vicinity waters when the maritime incident occurred.”
It has deployed BRP Melchora Aquino to rescue the motor tanker’s crew and one of its aerial assets to assess the oil spill situation.
The PCG presented an aerial survey of the area, which shows an oil slick 10.37 kilometers or 5.6 nautical miles, east of Lamao Point, with an estimated coverage of 3.7 kilometers or two nautical miles.
But PCG spokesperson Rear Admiral Armand Balilo clarified 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 leak was only “minimal.”
He also said they have yet to determine if parts of the main cargo fuel of 1.4 million liters have already spilled into the sea.
“We are racing against time, and we are doing our best to contain it,” Balilo said during an online briefing.
Reports indicated that the oil slick stretching about 3.7 kilometers was being carried by a “strong current” in an easterly, north-easterly direction and that marine environmental protection personnel have been mobilized to help contain it.
PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gavan said he had ordered an investigation into the incident.
The vessel’s sinking happened as heavy rains fueled by Typhoon Gaemi, which was named Carina in the Philippines, and the seasonal monsoon lashed Manila and surrounding regions in recent days.
In February 2023, a fuel tanker carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel oil sank in waters off the central island of Mindoro.
READ: Group estimates 2023 Mindoro oil spill damage at P41.2 billion
Diesel fuel and thick oil from that vessel contaminated the waters and beaches along the coast of Oriental Mindoro province, devastating the fishing and tourism industries.
The oil dispersed over hundreds of kilometers of waters famed for having some of the most diverse marine life in the world.
Thousands of fishermen were ordered to stay on shore until they could fish safely, and swimming was also banned— with reports from Agence France-Presse