Philippines to deploy underwater vehicle to pinpoint location of stricken tanker
- The vessel, the MT Princess Empress, was carrying about 800,000 litres of industrial fuel oil when it suffered engine trouble on February 28 in rough seas
- It was not immediately clear what caused the Philippine-flagged vessel to sink but all 20 crew members were rescued before it went down
Philippine authorities believe they have found the location of a tanker that sank off a central province last week, the environment ministry said on Monday, amid a race to assess the extent of an oil spill and contain further environmental damage.
The tanker, the MT Princess Empress, is thought to be lying at about 1,200 feet (366 metres) below sea level, off Oriental Mindoro province, though the information still needed to be verified, the ministry said in a statement.
A remotely operated autonomous vehicle would be deployed to help determine the exact location of the tanker, it said.
Authorities want to know how much oil is inside and how to pump the remainder out and stop any leaks, experts said.
The vessel was carrying about 800,000 litres (211,338) of industrial fuel oil when it suffered engine trouble on February 28 in rough seas, according to the coastguard.
It was not immediately clear what caused the Philippine-flagged vessel to sink but all 20 crew members were rescued before it went down.