Culasi exec urges gov't to quickly locate toxic cargo
The mayor of Culasi town in Antique has called on government agencies to fast-track the location and removal of missing toxic cargo from a cargo ship that sank off the coast of town at the height of typhoon "Frank" last month.
Mayor Aida Alpas said she has asked the Coast Guard and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to locate and remove around 80 sealed drums containing 16 metric tons of toxic chemical toxic substance toluene di-isocyanate (TDI).
"It is of outmost importance that toxic cargo is located and removed," Alpas said in a telephone interview.
The drums were among the cargo of the MV Ocean Papa which sank at noon of June 21 at the height of typhoon "Frank" near Mararison Island, around 5.6 km from the coast of Culasi which is 86 km north of the capital of San Jose.
TDI, a main ingredient in the production of flexible polyurethane foam and other polyurethane applications, can cause severe irritation of the skin and eyes and affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and central nervous systems if inhaled or ingested.
Coast Guard divers have failed to locate the missing containers which are believed to have been thrown overboard as the ship sank.
Alpas said some residents have become afraid to eat fish because of fears that they are contaminated. The mayor said they also fear that any leak would harm the coral reefs and other marine life.
"We are very much concerned of a possible leakage," she said.
Provincial health officer Dr. Norman Tanchuan, has allayed fears of contamination saying there has been no reported case of symptoms showing possible exposure or contamination to TDI.
The Department of Health (DOH) and and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) have sent monitoring teams at the site of the sunken cargo vessel to determine any risk to marine life and the health of residents.
DOH regional director Lydia Depra-Ramos said they have mobilized a team to monitor the situation in the area.
"What is important that is that the containers with the toxic substance are not opened and exposed," Ramos said in a telephone interview.
Dr. Sophia Chua of the DOH regional office said they have alerted residents not to open olive green-colored drums if these are found and to turn these over to the Coast Guard, Department of Environment and Natural Resources and local officials.
BFAR regional director Drusilla Ong said she has requested the BFAR central office to send their Monitoring Control Surveillance vessels and conduct water sampling in the area.
She said the release of such a large amount of toxic substance would result to massive fish kills.
Commodore William Melad, Coast Guard District Commander in Western Visayas, said they have sent tug boat in area to assist the location of the containers vans.
He said they have also talked with representatives of the owner of the cargo ship, the Ocean Container Lines Inc., to bring underwater detection equipment to help locate the drums containing TDI.
Melad said the ship owner has already contracted a firm to to salvage ship. Salvaging operations are set to start within two weeks.
The Coast Guard has also constituted a Special Board of Marine Inquiry to investigate the sinking of MV Ocean Papa and the MV Lake Paoay.
MV Lake Paoay, a cargo ship operated by the Semirara Mining Company, sank off the coast of Carles town in Iloilo on June 21. The ship was transporting 5,000 metric tons of coal from Semirara Island to a coal-fired power plant in Toledo City in Cebu.