By Gabriela Baron
Nearly four months after the MT Princess Empress capsized, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) announced on Saturday, June 17, the completion of underwater oil removal operations conducted in Oriental Mindoro waters.
PCG said that based on the remotely operated vehicle live videos, all eight cargo oil tanks were now empty and the only remaining observations were oil drips from the cargo piping line.
During the inspection and briefing, the Malayan Towage and Salvage Corp. (MSTC) assured the PCG of completing the oil removal/recovery operations by showing all eight cargo oil tanks and the ship’s operational tank with no trace of oil.
Oil removal and recovery operations started on May 29.
MTSC said two of its tugboats would still continue to monitor and conduct containment operations for oil that may leak from the fuel of MT Princess Empress.
MT Princess Empress, carrying 800,000 liters of industrial oil, capsized on Feb. 28, triggering a massive oil spill in Oriental Mindoro and nearby waters.