Salvors ready to remove main deck of US ship

MANILA, Philippines - Salvage teams working on the dismantling of the USS Guardian, the US Navy minesweeper that ran aground at Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea last January, are reportedly preparing for the removal of the main deck structure of the ship.

Commodore Enrico Efren Evangelista, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Palawan District commander, said that the good weather that prevailed in the Sulu Sea has enabled the salvors to perform their tasks effectively.

At the moment, the salvage teams from the SMIT Borneo, the US Navy, and the Malayan Towage and Salvage Corp. are conducting the preliminary operation in preparation for the removal of the main deck of the USS Guardian.

The “weather conditions support continued salvage operations. (The salvors) are focusing their efforts to continue clearing debris, begin interior cutting and rig lifting slings in preparation for the cutting and removal of the 01 level superstructure (located at the) aft of the funnel,” said Evangelista.

Last week, the PCG official said if the good weather prevails, they would be able to meet the March 23 deadline of completely removing the Guardian from the reef.

“If the progress would be this fast, I think we can make the March 23 deadline. (So far) the weather has been very cooperative in our salvage operations,” he said.

The salvors dismantled the smokestack, the mast and the bridge of the ship last week.

The 68-meter USS Guardian left Subic on Jan. 15 and ran aground at Tubbataha Reef on Jan. 17 between 2:30 a.m. and 3 a.m. while the ship was en route to Indonesia.

There were 79 crewmembers on board. The ship was reportedly carrying 15,000 gallons of automotive diesel oil that has been pumped out after the mishap to prevent an oil spill that would destroy the coral reef.

The Tubbataha Reef is one of the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) world heritage sites.

It has been estimated that the incident damaged at least 4,000 square meters of coral reef.

The estimated 10,000 hectares of coral in Tubbataha are home to about 600 species of fish, 360 species of corals, 11 species of sharks, 13 species of dolphins and whales, 100 species of birds, and also serve as the nesting ground for hawksbill and green sea turtles.