INAASAHAN ng Department of National Defense (DND) ang pagtulong ng United States Coast Guard sa isinasagawang paglilinis ng tumagas na langis mula sa MT Princess Empress.

Ayon kay DND Senior Undersecretary Carlito Galvez Jr. darating sa bansa sa mga susunod na araw ang US Coast Guard at isang C-5, ang pinakamalaking strategic airlifter ng US Air Force.

“We are looking forward to the arrival of the entire US Coast Guard contingent for the additional technical support in our disaster response operations. Although, one US C-17 with equipment (60K loader) already arrived this morning and is now at Subic Air Base. Another C-5 is expected to arrive tomorrow,” sabi n Galvez.

Nagsagawa si Galvez ng aerial inspection sa mga lugar na pinuntahan ng tumagas na langis.

“We will immediately employ these assets and integrate in our response operations. In addition, we continue to closely monitor the ROV’s (remotely-operated vehicle) operations for significant updates and to further determine the extent of the oil spill,” sabi pa ni Galvez.

Sinabi ni Galvez na nagsagawa na rin ang US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ng assessment sa mga apektadong lugar.

“They (NOAA) provide support for scientific modeling to estimate the trajectory of the oil spill and satellite imagery to boost assessment efforts,” paliwanag ni Galvez.

Nauna ng sinabi ni Galvez na nahanap na ng Japanese ROV ang kinaroroonan ng MT Princess Empress.