The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) on Monday expressed concern over the environmental damage caused by the grounding of a Chinese ship at Pag-asa Reef 1, about 2.6 kilometers east of the Philippine-held Pag-asa Island. “On 7 June 2025, a Chinese vessel with bow number 16868 was reported in shallow waters near Pag-asa Island. According to official reports, the vessel remained grounded for nearly three hours before managing to free itself without external assistance. It was later accompanied out of the area by the China Coast Guard [CCG] and two other Chinese vessels,” the task force said in a statement Monday. And while the Chinese ship did run aground directly on the coral reef, the vessel’s anchoring activity caused significant damage to the surrounding reef area.

Naval, R. A. (2025, July 15). WPS task force assessing damage caused by Chinese ship on reef. BusinessMirror, pp. A4, A6.