Yesterday, 11 crew members were put on flights to the Philippines, leaving only six in Tauranga, including the captain and navigational officer, who are facing charges over the ship's disastrous grounding.
Shipping agent Mike Hodgin, who has been helping the crew members since they evacuated the ship after it ran aground, said the Philippine Embassy was helping to send them home.
Philippine embassy minister and consul Giovanni Palec, who is in Tauranga to assist the remaining crew members, said he was worried about growing anti-Filipino sentiments.
Yesterday, he met crew members and lawyers provided by ship owner Costamare, but would not comment on what they discussed.
Asked what he had been told about what the crew were doing before the grounding, Mr Palec said it was inappropriate to comment as that was now the subject of an investigation.
The captain and navigational officer have been granted name suppression, and Mr Palec said the rest of the crew had also been granted "address suppression".
Members of the Tauranga Filipino community say they are feeling the wrath of locals outraged by the disaster.
"People are passing remarks like, 'They must be relatives of yours'. You know it's not a joke because you can feel the negative vibes," said Daisy Pascuade Groot, a Filipino business owner in Mount Maunganui.
Another Filipino community member, who did not wish to be named, said she sensed a "growing anti-Filipino feeling" in the Bay of Plenty.
"One cyclist asked if I was Filipino, and when I said yes, he just gave me the finger and cycled off," she said.
As the crew left New Zealand, the managing director of the Greek shipping company Costamare, which owns Rena, apologised.
"We want to say that we are deeply sorry for the situation that has arisen and the threat you are now facing from fuel oil from the vessel washing up on the beaches in your beautiful part of the world," Diamantis Manos said in a video, reading off an autocue.
Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby believed the video apology was not good enough and said: "I think the chief executive should come here to our city."
From the air yesterday, debris from Rena could be seen littered across the Bay of Plenty as tugs tried to corral containers that had tumbled from the vessel.
Fuel oil from the ship created a slick that appeared to be spreading in clumps over the bay.
The oil is washing ashore, despoiling holiday beaches and killing wildlife.
A spokesman for Costamare said there were "no plans in the works" for anyone from the company to come to New Zealand.
Mr Manos said he wanted to assure those affected by "these events" that the owners and managers of Rena took their responsibilities seriously.
No offer of payment was made.
"We recognise that in due course, liability for what has happened will be determined in accordance with the relevant laws and international conventions," he said.
Under the Maritime Transport Act, the civil liability to the ship's insurers is capped.
Legal commentators say the maximum sum is $14 million, and Prime Minister John Key has put the clean-up costs so far at $12.1 million.
The ship is insured for $US4.2 billion ($NZ5.3 billion) for a single event, with a sub-limit of about $US1 billion for a pollution event.
Costamare is one of the world's leading owners and providers of container ships for charter, and last year made more than $US443 million in profit.
Mr Key has indicated the Government will chase more cash from Rena's owner than the estimated liability the company already faces - but whether this will be successful is unclear.
The Government is considering a compensation package for Tauranga businesses taking a hit from the spill, but Transport Minister Steven Joyce said it was not committing to anything at this stage.
The heavy fuel oil pouring from the ship is banned in some southern seas because of the problems it causes in cold water, an expert says.
Heavy fuel oils are the heavy fractions of oil left after light fractions, such as jet fuel, kerosene, petrol and diesel are removed from crude oil, Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand executive officer John Pfahlert said.
Light fractions form a sheen on water but evaporate quickly.
Heavy fuel oils react quite differently.
"If it gets cold, it forms a gloopy substance exactly like ... you are seeing on the beach."
There had recently been a ban on use of heavy fuel oil in ships plying Antarctic waters and in New Zealand's sub-Antarctic Islands.
At a glance
• 11 Rena crew members put on flights to the Philippines yesterday amid fears for their safety.
• Ship owner's apology rejected by Tauranga mayor.
• Government likely to pursue more cash from Rena's owner than the estimated liability the company faces.
• Compensation package being considered for businesses affected by the oil spill, including surf schools, fishing fleets, cafes and hotels.
• Thousands of tonnes of sand could be removed in order to extract oil which has soaked into beaches.
- The New Zealand Herald and APNZ
