An oil spill from a capsized marine tanker off the coast of Manila Bay in the Philippines has reached the shores of a nearby fishing village, posing a threat to the health and livelihood of local fishermen. Efforts have commenced to clean up the fuel. The MT Terra Nova, which was carrying 1.5 million litres of industrial fuel, sank in rough seas near Limay in the province of Bataan, west of the Philippine capital, on Thursday. One crew member out of the 17 on board was killed.
Fishermen in Tanza, Cavite province, south of Manila, expressed distress as the oil slick reached their shores, and they reported a foul odour. 'This oil spill will significantly impact us fishermen, as we depend on the sea, which is now contaminated by oil,' said 48-year-old Renan Honsana. 'We will have to sell our catches at very low prices because people won't buy them. Where else can we earn a living except from this sea?' Honsana added.
The Philippine coastguard has sealed the leak from the capsized tanker and plans to start siphoning the oil to prevent further leakage. They conducted aerial surveys of the waters in Limay, Bulacan, and Cavite, observing only minimal oil sheen. Officials are investigating whether the sinking was related to Typhoon Gaemi, which intensified monsoon rains in the Philippines, causing floods and landslides that killed at least 36 people.
An oil spill from the tanker MT Princess Empress, which was carrying about 800,000 litres of industrial fuel when it capsized and eventually sank in February last year, took three months to clean up and affected tourist towns.
