Divers completed the retrieval of 402 containers of the toxic pesticide endosulfan from the sunken MV Princess of the Stars, removing a major obstacle to the recovery of hundreds of bodies feared entombed inside for more than three months.
The divers will now focus on taking out another batch of chemicals, as well as more than 200,000 liters of fuel inside the ship which is lying belly up off Sibuyan Island in Romblon province, according to Vice Adm. Wilfredo Tamayo.
The Philippine Coast Guard commandant said the salvor company, Titan Salvage, was expected to wrap up the retrieval of the harmful substances by Oct. 24 after which divers would begin removing the bodies of around 500 people trapped inside.
"The retrieval of the bodies will immediately follow once we remove all these chemicals and fuel," Tamayo said in a phone interview.
Discovery of the endosulfan, imported by Del Monte Philippines, Inc. for its pineapple plantation in Bukidnon province, earlier halted operations to get the bodies out of the ferry owned by Sulpicio Lines because of apprehension that the cargo might endanger divers.
Later, authorities learned that Bayer CropScience also had a cargo of the crop chemicals Antracol WP70, Tamaron 600SL, Trap 70WP and Fuerza GR3, aboard.
But Bayer representatives said the chemicals were highly biodegradable and would disintegrate when hit by sunlight.
Tamayo said the divers completed the retrieval of the last of the endosulfan containers at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.
The pesticide containers with 10 metric tons of endosulfan were loaded on a barge owned by Titan, he added.
Divers had to bore a hole through the ship's hull to reach the container van where the endosulfan was kept. Tamayo said there had been no sign that the endosulfan had contaminated the environment.
The Coast Guard and the members of the Task Force Princess of the Stars are scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss what to do with the endosulfan.
Return of cargo to Israel
The environment group EcoWaste coalition has urged the government to ship the toxic pesticide back to its port of origin, Israel.
According to the group, the chemical poses a grave threat to its handlers, transporters and members of the community where it will be stored.
The Princess of the Stars sank off Sibuyan at the height of Typhoon "Frank" (international codename: Fengshen) on June 21 while en route to Cebu from Manila with 864 people aboard, 500 of whom remained unaccounted for. Only 56 people survived the tragedy.
The Board of Marine Inquiry subsequently found Sulpicio Lines negligent and recommended that its license to operate be suspended.
The company has said the tragedy was "an act of God," blaming bad weather and the allegedly erroneous report by the country's weather bureau.
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