The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Monday, August 12, said that the oil sheen from the sunken oil tanker MT Terranova in Limay, Bataan has been contained already.
PCG chief, Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan, said in a television interview the oil sheen caused by the oil spill of the capsized vessel had been cleared since day five.
The tanker was carrying 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel when it sank off Bataan, part of Manila Bay, on July 25 due to bad weather brought by monsoon rains and winds.
The oil spill prompted the implementation of fishing bans in the coastal communities near Bataan, including in Cavite province.
Gavan said they will leave it to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the Department of Health (DOH) to determine if it is now safe to resume fishing.
The BFAR said it is not yet safe to consume fish caught from areas where oil slicks are observed.
According to updates from the PCG, the coast guard and contracted salvor FES Challenger Salvour and Builders are continuing salvage operations on MTKR Jason Bradley while oil spill booms have been deployed around MV Mirola 1.
Citing information from coast guard Lieutenant Commander Michael John Encina, the PCG said the sunken motor tanker Jason Bradley is now partially afloat as the siphoning of seawater continues in the vicinity waters of Barangay Cabcaben, Mariveles, Bataan.
“The contracted salvor will then move the vessel to the nearest safe shoreline, where the siphoning of 5,500 liters of diesel oil on board will occur,” the PCG quoted Encina in the agency’s Facebook post.
Jason Bradley and Mirola 1 were the second and third vessels that encountered serious trouble at sea last month.
