MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Friday reported that at least 161,612 liters of oil have been collected so far from the sunken MTKR Terranova.
The MTKR Terranova has been submerged in the waters off Bataan for nearly a month after sinking on July 25 during inclement weather caused by Super Typhoon Carina and the southwest monsoon.
“The contracted salvor, Harbor Star, reported over 161,000 liters of collected oil from August 19 to 22, 2024,” the PCG said in a statement.
According to the PCG, the rate of oil flow as of Thursday was 7,200 liters per hour.
However, the MTKR Terranova reportedly contains 1.4 million liters of oil. Assuming the siphoning rate remains at 7,200 liters per hour and continues for 24 hours a day, approximately 172,800 liters of oil would be siphoned daily.
Following the sinking of the MTKR Terranova, oil has reportedly reached the shores of Cavite, Metro Manila, Bulacan and Batangas.
The MTKR Terranova is not the only vessel that encountered trouble in Bataan waters in July. The MTKR Jason Bradley also sank, with reports of the shipwreck occurring just a few days after the MTKR Terranova.
According to the PCG’s latest report, the MTKR Jason Bradley’s contracted salvor, Fes Challenger, is resealing and patching the ship’s manholes and air vents in an attempt to refloat the vessel.
Meanwhile, the MV Mirola Uno merely ran aground in Bataan in July. The PCG said that the ship has since been moved to the Diving Industry Shipyard in Mariveles, Bataan, for retrofitting and repair.
Due to the proximity of the three vessels and the circumstances surrounding their incidents, the Department of Justice has opened the possibility that this could be a case of oil smuggling.
However, the owners of the MTKR Terranova have denied these allegations.
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