Oil slicks detected near Coron, Palawan, possibly from Oriental Mindoro oil spill
MANILA, Philippines — The oil spill in Oriental Mindoro may have stretched all the way to Coron, Palawan after traces of oil have been detected near the municipality, according to the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute (UPMSI).
Based on data from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s report, the UPMSI said that there is “detection of possible oil slicks near Coron, about 12 kilometers off of the Palawan municipality.”
“As of now, it is undetermined if the slicks in the area possibly drifted from the location of the sunken tanker, MT Princess Empress in Mindoro, or from other sources,” said the UPMSI on Monday.
When the image was taken on Sunday, the winds were weak. The UPMSI said that this could have made the slicks thicker as they would not break apart with calmer waves.
“The slicks seen measured at about 19 [kilometers] in length and about 3 [kilometers] in width,” said the UPMSI.
As per the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council’s latest report on Tuesday, 173,468 people have already been negatively affected by the oil spill, with 138,043 oil spill victims coming from Mimaropa alone.
The MT Princess Empress sank off the waters of Oriental Mindoro on February 28, carrying with it 800,000 liters of oil.
Clean-up operations by the local and national governments have been ongoing since.