ANN/THE STAR – Almost 100,000 people in a Philippine province have been affected by loss of livelihood, health risks and other impacts as a result of an oil spill from a motor tanker that sank two weeks ago, a provincial governor said yesterday.
The spill comes from MT Princess Empress, which was carrying 800,000 litres of industrial oil when it sank on March 1 off Oriental Mindoro, some 160 kilometres south of Manila.
Provincial Governor Humerlito Dolor said the tanker was still leaking, and the owner of the ill-fated vessel was working on dispatching a remotely operated vehicle to seal the leak.
“The damage to the province is quite heavy, especially to (the town of) Pola, where the oil spill reached the shorelines of all villages,” he said. “The most affected are the fishermen and their families, vendors of fish and fishing gear.”
“The damage to our marine life, marine resources is also quite big,” he added. “Many fish have died, while sea grasses, corals and mangroves are also damaged.”
Dolor said at least 19,956 families or more than 99,000 individuals have been affected, while at least 122 people have reported suffering from respiratory illnesses, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea due to the oil spill.
