Cranes to extract US warship

MANILA, Philippines - The US Navy minesweeper that ran aground and is taking in water on Tubbataha Reef will have to be lifted off the rocks using cranes, officials said yesterday.

Before the USS Guardian be removed from the reef, about 56,000 liters of fuel will be siphoned off to avoid spills, said Rear Adm. Thomas Carney, commander of the US Navy’s Logistics Group in the Western Pacific.

Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Commander Armand Balilo relayed Carney’s announcement yesterday and said Task Force Tubbataha and the US Navy team have decided to use a salvage ship with the capacity to lift the 1,300-ton ship off the reef.

Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Undersecretary Eduardo Oban Jr. said the USNS Salvor, a large US vessel that will aid in the salvage operations, will be deployed on the site. The salvage ship is expected to arrive today.

Balilo added Carney has contracted Smit towing company based in Singapore to lift and put the grounded ship on a salvage barge and bring it to a shipyard.

Oban said part of the salvage plan is to use a crane with high-lifting capacity to lift the stranded ship instead of dragging it to deeper waters that would cause more damage to the corals.

USS Guardian, which is based in Japan, crashed into the reef before dawn Jan. 17 while on its way to Indonesia after making a rest and refueling stop in Subic Bay.

All of its 79 officers and crew were transferred to two other US vessels the following day for safety reasons as the 68-meter long, 1,300-ton ship was unable to maneuver on its own as it was buffeted by strong winds and waves.  

Carney told reporters at the site that the ship is hard aground about 30 meters from the edge of the reef, a marine sanctuary that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

“It’s got hull penetration in several places, and there is a significant amount of water inside the ship right now,” he said. 

Carney described the salvage operation as “a very deliberate, complicated process” involving at least two more US Navy vessels that could take up to two weeks to complete.

“It depends on the environmental conditions out there as to how safely we can proceed,” he said.

Coast Guard commander Rear Adm. Rodolfo Isorena said efforts to remove the fuel have been hampered by the rough waters and another attempt will be made later. – With Lawrence Agcaoili, Rainier Allan Ronda, Rhodina Villanueva, AP