Tanker with 1,500 tonnes of oil sinks off Philippines

July 25 (BBC) - A tanker carrying close to 1.5 million litres of industrial fuel has capsized and sank off the Philippine capital on Thursday, causing an oil spill, officials say.

Sixteen crew members of the Philippine-flagged MT Terra Nova have been rescued while one remains missing, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said.

Mr Bautista said an oil spill has been detected but strong winds and high waves were hampering the authorities' response.

The incident comes a day after Typhoon Gaemi intensified seasonal monsoon rains, submerging large swathes of Metro Manila and its suburbs in deep floods.

Gaemi has made landfall in Taiwan, leaving three people killed and wounding hundreds more.

The MT Terra Nova was heading for the central Philippine city of Iloilo when it sank, leaving an oil spill stretching for several kilometres, authorities said.

It "capsized and eventually submerged," the coast guard said in a report, adding they were investigating whether bad weather was a factor.

Manila Bay, where the tanker capsized, hosts busy shipping lanes and its shores are home to shopping malls, casino resorts and fishing communities.

In March 2023, an oil tanker carrying 800,000 litres of industrial fuel sank off the coast of Oriental Mindoro province.

That oil reached the shores of several nearby fishing villages, coating beaches in black sludge.

Residents in coastal villages reported experiencing cramps, vomiting and dizziness, and clean-up workers deployed to the affected village of Pola also reported feeling ill.