Estancia residents near oil spill evacuated

RAINBOW OVER SAMAR Local residents pass through the typhoon-devastated rural community of Kaluwayan in Marabut town, Samar province, while a double rainbow appears during sunrise. All of the houses in the town were destroyed by strong winds brought by Supertyphoon “Yolanda.” RICHARD BALONGLONG / INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

ESTANCIA, Iloilo—Residents of the typhoon-ravaged village of Botongon in this town on Saturday fled from what remains of their houses amid heightened health risks from an oil spill.

“We don’t want to leave but we were warned that we would be dragged from our houses if we refused,” said Hilda Edraga, 63, who was with her daughter and three grandchildren at Northern Iloilo Polytechnic College West Campus in this town.

The school, about 2 kilometers from their village, served as the evacuation camp for evacuees.

Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor ordered the forced evacuation of 1,100 families or about 5,000 persons living within the 150-meter radius of the oil spill.

But as of noon Saturday, officials said they would evacuate only 231 families or about 1,000 persons because of lack of evacuation centers.

Strong winds and huge waves brought by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” dislodged the National Power Corp. (Napocor) Barge 103 from its moorings, some 100 m from the shoreline, and slammed the 32-megawatt barge into Barangay (village) Botongon, crushing a house and pinning two persons.

The storage tanks of the barge were believed to have been punctured during the collision triggering the oil spill.

The evacuation was recommended by the Department of Health (DOH) based on test results of toxicity levels of the air in the affected area.

Marilyn Convocar, DOH Western Visayas director, said test results showed that the level of benzene in the air reached 16.9 parts per million (ppm) or 30 times more than the allowable level of 0.5 ppm.

Continuous exposure to benzene causes skin irritation, respiratory disease and stomachache. Long-term exposure could lead to anemia and other blood disorders, according to Convocar.

Several residents have already complained of children getting sick.

“I did not want to evacuate. But we have to keep my grandchildren safe,” said Randy Armiza.

Arminaza said he wanted to repair their house, which was among those destroyed by Yolanda.

“We could not stand the smell especially in the morning when the wind blows in our direction,” he told the Inquirer at the oil spill site.

He said he was concerned about the health of his grandchildren aged 7, 9, 10 and 12  who have started coughing.

“The Napocor should have removed the oil at the soonest time. It’s been 15 days already,” he lamented.

The municipal council has passed a strongly worded resolution demanding that the Napocor remove the remaining oil in the tanker and clean up  the water and the coastline.

“We don’t need reassurances. We need action,” said Estancia Vice Mayor Rodoel Aclaro.

Roy Paje, Napocor oil spill coordinator and information officer, said they were committed to clean up the spill and remove the remaining bunker oil in the tanker at the soonest.

“Nobody wants this to happen. We were also stunned with what happened,” he said.

Power Sector Assets and  Liabilities Management Corp. has tapped the Kuan Yu salvage contractor to siphon off the remaining oil from the tanker and clean up the oil spill. The operation was set to begin Sunday.