Oil siphoning from Terra Nova stalled anew

MANILA, Philippines — For the third day in a row, bad weather disrupted the siphoning of 1.4 million liters of industrial oil from the sunken motor tanker Terra Nova yesterday, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.

The PCG said it suspended the siphoning operations to prevent possible oil leaks that may be caused by strong underwater current and bad weather conditions.

As of Sept. 1, salvor firm Harbor Star has extracted a total of 1.25 million liters of oily waste from the tanker.

The oil siphoning has been suspended since Sept. 2 amid rough sea conditions due to Tropical Storm Enteng.

While waiting for the weather to improve, the Harbor Star resumed the transport of oily materials to a waste treatment facility in Marilao, Bulacan.

“As of 10:43 a.m. today, Harbor Star has transferred over 208,000 liters of oily waste to the facility,” the PCG said yesterday.

The Terra Nova sank in the waters off Limay, Bataan at the height of Typhoon Carina on July 25.

The tanker was allowed to depart a port in Bataan as no tropical cyclone warning signal was hoisted at the time.

Of the 17 officers and crewmembers on board, one reportedly died during the sinking.