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Thursday August 17, 2:25 PM Philippines warns oil spill could get worse Photo: AFP Click to enlarge NUEVA VALENCIA, Philippines (AFP) - The Philippines says a massive oil spill could get much worse without urgent help to lift a stricken tanker, still loaded with fuel, off the ocean floor. The spill, which has already devastated nature sites and covered miles of coastline in black sludge, has been caused by only a fraction of the oil on the doomed Solar I seeping out of the ship's hold, officials said. "We cannot just sit and wait," said Lieutenant-Commander Joseph Coyme, spokesman for the Philippine coastguard. He said the spill could not be cleaned up for the moment and called raising the vessel the "foremost priority." It sank in the Panay Gulf off Guimaras island on Friday, leaving two of the 20 crew missing. Coyme said survivors indicated that only one of the ship's 10 containers had ruptured, emptying more than 50,000 gallons of oil into the sea. Around 450,000 gallons are still on board, and there were fears the seawater and metal stress could corrode or burst, dramatically worsening what is already acknowledged as the worst oil spill in the country's history. The government has asked Indonesia and Japan to spend specialist teams to help but Coyme said the ship would have to be refloated before the clean-up begins, adding that the United States had been asked for urgent assistance. The ship is on a sea bed some 3,000 feet (900 metres) deep. Philippines salvage teams only have the capability to dive to around 120 feet. Coyme said there had been no formal offer of help so far from Tokyo or Jakarta. Philippine Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz also suggested Manila could also seek possible military help from the United States. While the oil slick could not be cleaned up for the moment, teams were trying to contain it with giant booms and chemical dispersants, Coyme said. The slick now stretches across 13 nautical miles of water. Coyme said the black sludge had already reached Negros, the country's fourth largest island, and contaminated the beaches of Bago city and two adjacent towns. Guimaras officials have said the environmental disaster has affected more than 200 kilometers (125 miles) of coastline, damaging mangrove swamps, seaweed plantations and coral reefs containing popular dive sites. The coastguard has ordered Petron Corp, which chartered the tanker, to hire a salvage company capable of safely recovering the remaining cargo. It was also ordered to pay for the entire cost of the cleanup, including the fuel for the coastguard and other vessels involved. No estimate has been put on the cleanup but it is expected to run into million of dollars and take at least a year, according to environmental groups. Residents of Guimaras, including the fishing town of Nueva Valencia, have been asked to employ picks, shovels, tall grass, rice husks and other absorbent material for the clean up, the civil defense office said in a statement. Civil defense office deputy chief Anthony Golez meanwhile warned the public against the possible danger posed by the slick. Bathing, swimming, washing clothes or wading in the affected bodies of water are discouraged, while fish and shellfish harvested from these areas should not be sold or eaten, he said in a statement.