An oil tanker with 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel oil has sunk in Manila Bay. A race against time has begun to prevent the cargo from leaking into the environment, even though a kilometer-long trail has already been detected. “There would be serious damage to Manila if there were significant leaks,” the Coast Guard says.
In the meantime, 16 of the 17 crew members have been rescued.
Philippines: Sunken oil tanker ‘did not violate rules’
The Philippine-flagged oil tanker that sank off Manila Bay “did not violate the rules” of navigation in bad weather, the Philippine Coast Guard said hours after the incident.
When the oil tanker Mt Terra Nova set sail, no public storm warning had been issued, so it “did not violate any rules and regulations” relating to navigation in severe weather, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Rear Admiral Armando Balilo said in a statement.
The race against time to avoid the cargo from being lost in the environment began immediately, even though a kilometer-long trail has already been detected. “There would be serious damage to Manila if there were significant losses,” the same sources warned. In the meantime, 16 of the 17 crew members have been rescued.