Officials in the Philippines are investigating a mystery as an old, abandoned cargo ship was found stranded on the shores of Bataan Island, near Manila Bay. While there are concerns about a potential oil leak from the ship, the Philippine Coast Guard is primarily focused on the sunken tanker Terranova and the grounded tanker Jason Bradley.
Abandoned Cargo Ship
Last week, the Coast Guard received reports about the small cargo ship Mirola-1 (400 dwt) just before a typhoon hit. Today, the National Bureau of Investigation’s Naval Intelligence Unit reported finding the 45-year-old vessel on the west side of Bataan, severely tilted. An initial inspection revealed there was no one on board, and they are still trying to identify the ship’s owners.
Mirola-1 was found abandoned and washed ashore.
Built in 1979 in Japan, the cargo ship is 177 feet (54 meters) long and has been operating in the Philippines since 2011. Photos of the grounded vessel show it in poor condition with heavy rust and a collapsed section of the deck house.
The vessel has a troubled history with the Coast Guard. In January 2023, 18 crewmembers were detained when the Coast Guard caught the ship offloading oil to three smaller boats, suspecting smuggling and theft of up to 30,000 liters of diesel fuel.
The Coast Guard had planned to conduct an aerial survey of the grounded ship and take oil samples but chose against it due to concerns of leaks and the ship’s condition.
They report a slight oil sheen and a faint diesel odor in the area. Individuals who boarded the ship shared videos showing two oil drums floating on the deck. Coast Guard officials stated it was light diesel that would evaporate with time and that their focus would remain on the Terranova while monitoring Mirola-1.
