BOLINAO—Mayor Alfonso Celeste has reiterated his call to national government agencies to order the owner of a sunken Myanmar ship off the town’s coast to remove the vessel as the oil spill has now affected two barangays.

Celeste said Thursday that oil spill has reached barangays Binabalian and Dewey, prompting members of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Bantay Dagat and barangay folks to undertake a massive clean-up last Sunday and Monday.

The oil sludge, which Celeste said has been swept to the shoreline here, is reportedly very thick and black,

Fishermen have refrained from using their nets to fish for fear that the oil will damage their fishing gears.

Celeste said so far the oil spill has not reached their aquaculture and tourism sites but expressed fear it might eventually do in the future.

“Our problem is the sunken ship MV Harita Bauxite is here in Bolinao so we are continuously worried … Right now, the oil spill has been contained but we cannot tell how it will be in the future because the situation depends on the wind direction,” the mayor said.

“They can do it if they want to. Anyway it’s the insurance firm that would shoulder the expenses,” he added, referring to the vessel’s owner.

The oil spill has reportedly affected some coastal towns as far as La Union and Ilocos Sur in the north.—Eva Visperas

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