Cargo vessel collides with oil tanker

A cargo vessel loaded with rice and fruits collided with an oil tanker off Corregidor Island yesterday morning.

The Coast Guard said the cargo ship, M/V Express 2, which had 30 crew members on board, was making its way to Manila from Cebu City when it struck the M/T Arowana 3 oil tanker at about 7:30 a.m. some eight nautical miles off Corregidor Island.

Investigation showed that the M/V Express 2 hit the tanker, which had come from Subic Bay, at the starboard bow side (right side front).

No one was reported injured in the incident.

The Coast Guard was checking if the collision has caused an oil spill in the area. It dispatched two helicopters to the site to assess the situation.

The M/V Express 2 was later towed to Pier 12 in Manila.

Investigators were still probing the cause of the collision. — Mike Frialde, Raffy Viray and Ric Sapnu