The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) announced on Monday, May 29, that the "siphoning" operation or the clean-up for the remaining oil spill from the sunken tanker MT Princess Empress on the waters of Naujan, Oriental Mindoro has commenced.
In an update posted on Facebook, PCG said the Dynamic Support Vessel (DSV) Fire Opal, the vessel to be used for the "siphoning" operation, arrived around 9 am.
The clean-up will take 20 to 30 days, depending on the weather and the subsea progress, Incident Manager Team-Oriental Mindoro (IMT-Ormin) Commander CG Commodore Geronimo Tuvilla said.
"Once the oil removal is completed, we hope that the process will pave the way for the rehabilitation of affected areas and finally transition to the normalcy of lives of affected Mindoreños," he noted.
The DSV Fire Opal sailed from Singapore on May 19 and arrived at Subic Bay Freeport on May 26 before going to Oriental Mindoro.
According to the Coast Guard, the Malayan Towage and Salvage Corporation chartered the DSV Fire Opal which was insured by the Protection and Indemnity Insurance Club.
On February 28, oil tanker MT Princess Empress, carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel oil, sank in the waters off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro due to engine overheating.
Written By Dana Ebreo, DZRH News Online Intern
