Bad weather has forced a US Navy-contracted salvage team to suspend the dismantling of the USS Guardian, the minesweeper that has been grounded since Jan. 17 at the Tubbataha Reefs in the Sulu Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said yesterday. Lt. Commander Armand Balilo, the PCG spokesman, said the operation would resume “if the weather at the reef permits.” In a text message to the Inquirer, he said that “as per weather forecasts, tidal height and wind speeds are expected to increase or worsen.”

Esplanada, J. E. (2013, March 6). Bad weather stalls Tubbataha salvage operation anew. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A7.