MANILA: A Philippine-flagged tanker carrying 1.4 million litres of industrial fuel oil capsized and sank off Manila on Thursday ( Jul 25 ), authorities said, as they raced against time to contain the spill.
The MT Terra Nova was heading for Iloilo’s key area when it sank in Manila Bay, almost 7 kilometers off Limay Municipality in Bataan state, close to the capital, in the early hours of the morning.
In the hectic lake, an oil spill extending for some kilometers has been found.
Rear Admiral Armando Balilo, a spokesman for the Philippine Coast Guard, stated at a lecture that” we are racing against time and we will try our best to have it immediately and prevent the fuel from leaking.”
He warned that the biggest flow in Spanish history would occur if all the fuel in the tanker started to leak.
” There is a great risk that Manila may be affected, yet the shore of Manila, if the gas will leak because it is within Manila Bay”, Balilo said.
Jaime Bautista, the director of transportation, reported that 16 of the 17 staff members had been saved.
Although a search for the missing crew member was afoot, Bautista claimed strong winds and great waves were preventing efforts to respond.
Four of the staff were receiving medical treatment.
When the MT Terra Nova capsized and sank, the seacoast guard said it was looking into “if there was a wind disruption in the nearby waterways.”