Bishops’ conference sends aid to affected families in the coastal province of Oriental Mindoro
This handout photo taken on March 8, 2023 and released by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) shows coast guard personnel and volunteers collecting debris covered with oil during a clean-up along the coast in Pola, Oriental Mindoro Province, days after an oil spill from a sunken tanker. (Photo: Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)/AFP)
Nearly 100 residents in a coastal province in the Philippines have fallen ill due to water pollution caused by an oil spill from a sunken tanker carrying industrial fuel oil.
Residents of Pola town in Oriental Mindoro province, which has declared a state of calamity, have complained of health problems after drinking water from their own faucets.
“This environmental tragedy has caused us great trouble. It did not only pose a threat to our marine life but endangered the lives of our residents,” Pola mayor Jennifer Cruz told reporters on March 10.
Cruz said the greatest damage was caused to potable water sources.
“We have more than 60 people who have been affected. They felt nauseous and sick. They had headaches and loose bowel movements,” Cruz added.
The spill has caused the closure of more than 30 beaches, causing 30 million pesos (US$5,46,622.20) worth of losses, Humerlito Dolor, governor of Mindoro province, which is about nearly 140 kilometres southwest of the capital Manila, told reporters on March 10.
The spill has affected as many as 20,000 hectares of coral reefs, 9,900 hectares of mangroves, and 6,000 hectares of seagrass, according to the department of environment and natural resources.
The Philippines’ tourism ministry has raised concerns over popular diving destinations, including the Verde Island passage, as the spill is spreading.
Mayor Cruz said she would file a formal suit against the tanker, MT Princess Empress, carrying 800,000 liters (211,338 gallons) of industrial fuel oil that sank off the coast of Mindoro province on Feb. 28. All its crew was rescued by another ship before the vessel went down.
“One had an asthma attack. Of course, the breeze carries the particles … there is also air pollution in the area,” Maria Rosario Vergeire, officer-in-charge of the department of health, told reporters on March 9.
“The water that we got did not look like it was contaminated. It was clear just like before. It also did not smell something was wrong. We thought if the water was infected, it would turn unclear,” a Pola resident, Jenny Segovia, 38, told UCA News.
Segovia said her husband, Alfredo, 40, had diarrhea two days after she complained of a headache.
“My husband felt another illness … we both went to a hospital and the doctor had confirmed that what we were feeling was because of the oil spill,” Segovia added.
Another resident, 29, whose child’s asthma was purportedly triggered by the oil spill, said they had spent more than 20,000 pesos (US$400) in a private hospital.
“I am an ordinary public government employee working at the municipal hall. I spent almost the same as my monthly salary on a disease triggered by oil spill. The private shipping line should pay us,” the child’s parent, who wished to remain anonymous, told UCA News.
Local physicians have advised residents to wear face masks to prevent lung infection.
“Face masks reduce the possibility of lung infection. The scent of oil is harmful to the lungs. It could trigger asthma and emphysema,” Mindoro physician Mark Sogoanon told UCA News.
“The locals here drink from their deep well. It [the oil spill] has also infected the water system beneath,” Sogoanon added.
The authorities have imposed a fishing ban until the spill is cleaned up, affecting more than 18,000 fishermen across 60 villages.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has sent aid to 250 affected families.
“Caritas has sent food packs and donations. Their fishermen could not go to work so they have nothing to eat,” Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo of Kidapawan, who heads the pontifical charity in the Catholic majority nation, told Radyo Veritas on April 9.
On its part, Lipa Archdiocese, which also covers Mindoro, has said it would also send food items.
“The relief goods will be distributed once the beneficiaries’ list has been finalized,” a priest in the archdiocese, Father Edwin Gariguez, told UCA News.
The Philippines Coast Guard has been making efforts to contain the spill and is reported to have located the Philippine-flagged vessel. The coast guard is verifying how much oil is left inside the tanker.
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