SAN JOSE, Antique – A cargo ship ran aground some 300 meters from the shoreline of Barangay 4 in this capital town.
Twelve out of 22 of M/V Star Liberty’s crew members were hurt during Monday’s incident.
The 383-gross ton cargo ship was anchored at the San Jose de Buenavista Port from Cebu since Aug. 28 while it unloaded 20,000 bags of cement.
Inclement weather, brought about by the southwest monsoon or habagat, led the ship to drift into a rocky portion of the shore.
“The ship’s anchor was dragged to a rocky portion of the sea and its engine won’t start,” said Philippine Coast Guard-Antique Station commander Perlita Cinco.
“This led the captain to order his crew to abandon the ship,” Cinco added.
The bruised crew members were brought to the hospital for treatment.
Other crew members were housed in the barangay hall until such time they could return to Cebu.
The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, headed by Broderick Train, assured that they have booms ready to be used in case of an oil spill.
The Coast Guard confirmed that the vessel has around 6,000 liters of diesel fuel when it left Cebu last week.
“As of now the ship is already in a stable position,” Cinco said. (With a report from PNA/PN)
The 383-gross ton cargo ship was anchored at the San Jose de Buenavista Port from Cebu since Aug. 28 for unloading 20,000 bags of cement to a consignee here in the province.