Agencies, communities help contain oil spill in San Ricardo

Published on: July 15, 2023

Updated as of July 15, 2023 7:38 am

By Marcelo Pedalino

SAN RICARDO, Southern Leyte (PIA) -- The collaborative efforts of government agencies, the local government and the residents resulted to a quick response in clearing the oily slime that stained the shorelines of barangays Timba and Benit in this town on Friday, July 7.

Municipal Mayor Roy Salinas said in an interview with the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), the spill may have been carried by the sea’s surface current and subsequently washed ashore, smearing stones and other materials along the coastline.

While one of the docked vessels was initially suspected as the cause, Salinas clarified that upon closer inspection, no leaks were found among the sea-going crafts that have arrived at the time when the oily substance was discovered.

“The seawater is now clean,” the mayor declared.

Earlier, over the weekend, a dedicated clean up operation took place for two consecutive days. The initiative involved the participation of police personnel, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), municipal employees, barangay officials, and residents of the affected communities

Residents help clean the stones stained by a sudden spillage of oil carried by the sea to the shorelines of San Ricardo, Southern Leyte. (Photo by PNP San Ricardo MPS)

Based on an incident report filed by Coast Guard Lieutenant Donna Liza Duran, the station manager of the PCG in Maasin City, they collected five sacks of oily debris along the coastal area of Barangay Benit.

It was also stated that there were ”minimal traces of oil left in the affected vicinity waters.” As a result, there was no need to lay an oil spill boom for containment.

On Tuesday afternoon, July 11, approximately 300 family food packs arrived in San Ricardo from the DSWD regional office. These food packs were prepositioned in a warehouse in Sogod town and were intended for distribution to the residents of barangays Timba and Benit.

Family food packs from the DSWD regional office are unloaded for distribution to residents of barangays Tima and Benit in San Ricardo, Southern Leyte. (Photo by DSWD-8)

According to Reynaldo Daganasol Jr. of DSWD Southern Leyte sub-field office, one of family food pack typically includes 6 kilos of rice, 2 tins of sardines, 4 tins of corned beef, 4 tins of corned tuna, 5 sachets of coffee, and 5 sachets of cereal.

In an earlier report, the regional DSWD office, in coordination with the San Ricardo LGU, had assessed that the incident impacted 297 families or 1,118 individuals in the two barangays. (MMP, with reports from DSWD So. Leyte sub-field office, PCG, and San Ricardo MDRRMO)