Salvage of MV Ocean Papa completed, toxic cargo not found
The salvage operations of the wreckage of the cargo ship that sank off Antique was completed yesterday, according to the Coast Guard.
Commodore William Melad, Coast Guard District Commander in Western Visayas, said the operation was completed after 99 days involving the cutting up into parts of the cargo ship MV Ocean Papa and transporting them to the shore.
Melad will officially terminate the operations on Thursday after clearing operations and loading of equipment will be completed.
Salvage teams employed by the C.V. Gaspar Salvage and Lighterage Company have cut up and transported sections of the ship weighing 10 tons each and totaling 775 tons of wreckage, according to Melad.
The MV Ocean Papa sank due to strong winds and rough seas at noon of June 21 near Mararison Island around 5.6 km from the coast of Culasi while en route to Iloilo City from Manila.
Two of the vessel's crew members, including ship captain Carlo Kho, died, while two others remain missing. Twenty four crew members were rescued.
The search operations for the missing toxic cargo of the vessel was earlier called off by the Coast Guard after more than a month of search operations.
Divers failed to locate around 80 sealed drums containing at least 16 metric tons of the toxic substance toluene di-isocyanate (TDI).
The cargo was among those believed thrown off the vessel shortly before it sank
The owner of the sunken vessel, the Oceanic Container Lines Inc., had opted to stop the search operations for the missing cargo because of risks to divers in going to deeper areas.
Around 61 container vans from the ship have been recovered after these were swept ashore and another was found by divers near the ship.
But 80 sealed drums containing at least 16 metric tons TD were not among those recovered despite the use of sonar-equipped ships.
TDI is a main ingredient in the production of flexible polyurethane foam and is used in manufacturing synthetic leather, coated fabrics, paints and adhesives. The chemical can cause severe irritation of the skin and eyes and affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal and central nervous systems if inhaled or ingested.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Western Visayas earlier issued a warning against possible contamination of the carcinogenic substance through inhalation, ingestion or direct contact. They have advised residents not to open the container vans and drums if they are recovered.
But the Oceanic Container Lines Inc. had said that that any possible spill of the TDI on the sea will not pose any serious threat to marine life, citing a study it commissioned.
The ship owner had offered a P100,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of container vans with the toxic cargo.