By Janine Dumaguin
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) and some of its air force assets are set to arrive in the Philippines to assist in the ongoing cleanup operations of the oil spill in Oriental Mindoro.
The Department of National Defense (DND) Officer-in-Charge Senior Undersecretary Carlito Galvez Jr. on Sunday, March 26, said they anticipate the USCG contingent and the C-5 cargo jet, the US Air Force’s largest strategic airlifter, to arrive in the coming days.
“We are looking forward to the arrival of the entire US Coast Guard contingent for the additional technical support in our disaster response operations,” Galvez said.
Galvez reported that one US C-17 (60K loader) has already arrived at Subic Air Base on Saturday, March 25.
“We will immediately employ these assets and integrate in our response operations. In addition, we continue to closely monitor the ROV’s (remotely-operated vehicle) operations for significant updates and to further determine the extent of the oil spill,” Galvez pointed out.
Meanwhile, according to Galvez, the Japanese ROV found out that the submerged motor tanker (MT) Princess Empress “suffered extensive structural damage after sinking.”
“At this point, no visible consumption fuel leak coming from the damaged vessel. Oil leaks had been observed from all [eight] compartments (tanks). Some through ballast tanks. Volume of remaining oil inside the compartments cannot be estimated at this point. Oil spillage rate from the source is likewise yet to be determined,” Galvez said, quoting the findings of the Japanese team.
To date, a total of 10,206 liters of oil waste and oily water, as well as 72,643 kilograms of oil-contaminated debris, were collected during the shoreline cleanup efforts. – cf