Salvage teams may have removed the crippled minesweeper USS Guardian from Tubbataha Reef during the Holy Week but tourists and divers are still barred from going near the site of the salvage work.
The Tubbataha Management Office and Philippine Coast Guard said divers are still not allowed at two of the 15 Tubbataha diving sites, particularly those near the salvage site, radio dzBB's Carlo Mateo reported on Tuesday.
Angelique Songco, the head of the Tubbataha Management Office, said crews are still cleaning up debris from the stricken vessel.
On the other hand, Coast Guard Palawan and Task Force Tubbataha head Commodore Enrico Evangelista said they may meet with Philippine scientists and US Navy marine biologists.
Last March, Evangelista said tourists and divers visiting Tubbataha Reef may be allowed to view the salvage operations from a distance but may not take photos of the operations.
Meanwhile, a separate dzBB report said that with the main salvage work now done, the barge carrying the cut-up parts of the USS Guardian is to leave, but will refuel and pass Puerto Princesa in Palawan for clearance before heading to Japan.
The USS Guardian ran aground at Tubbataha Reef last Jan. 17. The TMO initially estimates that some 4,000 square meters of the reef had been damaged.
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