Philippine oil tanker that sunk off last month found as spill spreads
Oil spill from the tanker MT Princess Empress
A Philippine oil tanker—MT Princess Empress—that sank off on the shores of Pola in Oriental Mindoro province last month and caused an oil spill has been located.
Oriental Mindoro Governor Humerlito Dolor told reporters on Tuesday that the tanker was found by a Japanese remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV). It is nearly 400 metres (1,300 feet) below the waves, reports AFP news agency.
“Finally, the MT Princess Empress has been found! Here’s the first glimpse of the sunken ship using an ROV, which was on board the Japanese vessel we welcomed yesterday and brought to the area of the incident,” Dolor made the announcement on Facebook.
He said that the works are in progress to plug any leaks and extract the remaining oil from the tanker.
The country’s national disaster agency said that the hull’s condition is being assessed and a decision about how to “control the spill from its source” would be made once the assessment is complete.
The MT Princess Empress was carrying 800,000 litres of industrial fuel oil when it sank on February 28 off the central island of Mindoro, south of the capital, Manila.
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Since then, diesel fuel and thick oil from the vessel contaminated the waters and beaches of Oriental Mindoro province and other islands.
Oil was spotted as far away as Casian Island, off the north coast of the western island of Palawan, about 350 kilometres (220 miles) southwest of where the tanker sank.
According to local reports, the spill caused thousands of people to fall ill, apart from destroying thousands of hectares of coral reefs, mangroves and seaweed.
Following the disaster, the Philippines sought assistance from several countries to help contain and clean up the slick. Japan and the United States sent coastguard personnel teams to help.
(With inputs from agencies)
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