LIMAY, Bataan — The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and the Subic Freeport community have mobilized to help contain the oil spill in Bataan.

According to SBMA Chairman and Administrator Eduardo Jose L. Aliño, the SBMA lent its 160-meter spill boom last Friday to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to assist in containing the oil spill from the MT Terra Nova that sank off Limay on Thursday.

“We hope that they would also use it not just for the MT Terra Nova incident, but also for the MTKR Jason Bradley that sank on the coastal waters of Mariveles,” Aliño said.

The SBMA conducted an emergency meeting through Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Ronnie Yambao last week to discuss the deployment of the oil spill boom using the PCG’s BRP Suluan.

Two towage companies were tapped to assist in containing the oil spill from MT Terra Nova using their expertise, equipment, and tugboats. Yambao identified the companies as Harbor Star Shipping Services Inc. and Malayan Towage and Salvage Corp.

“The two companies have requested the Operations Branch of the Seaport Department to exit the Port of Subic to respond to the oil spill in Limay,” Yambao said.

The SBMA conducted an emergency meeting through Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Ronnie Yambao last week to discuss the deployment of the oil spill boom using the PCG’s BRP Suluan.

Recently, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) held a joint meeting between the national and regional disaster risk reduction committee to address the Bataan oil spill incident.

In Limay, people associated with the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Councils worked on oil spill booms made from coconut husks and PET bottles at the local fish port on Saturday.

According to overall chairman Edgardo Gomez, the fisherfolk of Limay need to take action as their livelihood is at stake due to the oil spill in the coastal waters of Bataan.

Working in tandems, one chairman would sew the net while another put the coconut husk-covered PET bottle inside, creating a makeshift boom.

The Limay fishing community, severely impacted by reduced market catches due to the oil spill threat, is taking proactive measures. “This is a united front of the fisherfolks of Limay,” Gomez said, adding that the oil spill should be contained as soon as possible.

Gomez said that the sales of caught fish in this town have been affected, citing this as the lowest to date this year due to fear of contamination.