US navy to help retrieve downed PAF plane

MANILA/DAVAO, Philippines — he United States’ Navy service ship USNS McDonnell is expected to arrive Saturday afternoon (Aug. 30) to help the Philippine military in the retrieval of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) C-130 cargo plane, which crashed on Monday and is now resting 600 meters below the Davao Gulf. Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DoH) assured Davao residents that the risk to marine life and health from the downed plane is close to zero, this after the wreckage of the cargo plane, carrying at least 14,800 liters of A-1 jet fuel, started to leak oil. Lt. Gen. Pedrito S. Cadungog, commanding general of the PAF, told reporters Friday that the USNS McDonnell, a service ship that is "equipped with side scanning radar," would probably be coming from Hawaii, where the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) is based. Side scan radar is used for locating shipwrecks, downed aircraft, drums, tires, pipelines and other items in rivers, lakes, or ocean floors. The USNS McDonnell will be reporting directly to Col. Isagani Silva, commander of the PAF’s Tactical Operations Group once it arrives. A statement from the Air Force said the USPACOM move to send the McDonnell was in response to the Philippines’ request for assistance to recover the C-130. Earlier this week, Mr. Cadungog said even with the modern equipment that the divers used in their search, rescue and retrieval operations for the past few days, it still wasn’t enough to reach the bottom of the gulf where the wreck was believed to be located. He said the depth of the area was about 600 to 800 feet, while divers are only capable of reaching a depth of 200 to 300 feet below sea level. The wreckage is found between the waters of Barangay Bukana on the Davao shoreline and Samal Island. No health risks Meanwhile, the health department in the Davao region has assured the public that the toxicity risk to Davao Gulf’s marine life and health due to the crash is close to zero. Dr. Pauline Jean R. Ubial, regional director of the DoH-XI, said the large volume of water in the Davao Gulf would dissipate the effects of any oil spill before it could pose a danger to the health of the people and marine life. In fact, she said, the government has not issued a fish ban in Davao City and the fishermen are allowed to continue to catch fish in the gulf. This came after the department had consulted with the University of the Philippines-National Toxicology Center and the National Epidemiology Center. The Davao Gulf supplies about 22,000 metric tons of fish per year to the local market, data from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-XI (BFAR-XI) showed. Margarita Moran-Floirendo, executive director of the Save the Davao Gulf Foundation, said that the Davao Gulf remains the second largest in terms of marine biodiversity in the country, with 11 marine mammal species. However, as a precautionary measure, the Health department has issued an advisory asking the public, among others, to: stay at least 25 to 50 meters away from the fuel spill site; not to light cigarettes, torches, or open fires on the shorelines within a 50-meter radius of the site; and stay upwind. Interviewed by reporters, Councilor Leonardo R. Avila III of the committee on environment said any volatile liquid like high-octane gas would only be dangerous in a small body of water, which is not the case in Davao Gulf. He said the local government unit is coordinating with the Philippine Coastguard and the BFAR-XI to check their monitoring mechanisms to see if there are any adverse effects from the oil spill. Plane crash The C-130 cargo ship got lost on Monday minutes after taking off from the Davao International Airport. It was supposed to go to Iloilo City to pick up members of the Presidential Security Group to be brought to Manila. The cargo ship was reportedly carrying two pilots, seven crew members, and two unidentified Philippine Army personnel. They were pilot Maj. Manuel A. Zambrano, co-pilot Captain Adrian B. de Dios, T/Sgt. Constantino Enrique R. Lobrigas (flight engineer), S/Sgt. John M. Areola (student flight engineer), S/Sgt. Gary T. Dinoso (crew chief), S/Sgt. Felix Pedro M. Patriarca (flight mechanic), S/Sgt. Petronilo F. Fernandez (load master), S/Sgt. Patricio R. Claur, Jr. (load master), S/Sgt. Aldrin A. Illustrisimo (student load master). No survivors have been found. — Aizel Joyce A. Catipay and Joel B. Escovilla, BusinessWorld