The provinces of Pangasinan and La Union have been placed under red alert status, ready for the possible onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng. In a phone interview on Saturday, Pangasinan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) operations supervisor Patrick Aquino said they have prepositioned rescue equipment and personnel in the province’s landslide- and flood-prone areas. “We have rescue equipment in Bani, Mangatarem, San Fabian, and Calasiao towns. We are continuously monitoring the river systems and so far, they are all at (a) normal level as of Saturday morning,” he said. Aquino said the province
The Police Regional Office in Caraga (PRO-13) announced on Saturday the apprehension of the most wanted New People’s Army (NPA) leader in the region. In a statement, PRO-13 Director, Brig. Gen. Romeo Caramat Jr., identified the NPA rebel as Archie Bago Perales (alias Sano/Yuds), 41, a resident of Sitio Hinandayan, Barangay Camagong, Nasipit, Agusan del Norte. Perales was arrested Wednesday night by joint operatives of the Butuan City Police Office, Intelligence Division of PRO-13, and Bukidnon Provincial Intelligence Unit in Purok 1, Barangay Diego Silang, Butuan City. Of his seven arrest warrants dated April 4, 7, and
Local government units (LGUs) in the Caraga Region have implemented forced evacuation of residents in low-lying areas on Friday due to the effects of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng. While the provinces of Surigao del Norte, Dinagat Islands, and the northern portions of Surigao del Sur and Agusan del Norte were placed under Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 1 on Friday, no province in Mindanao has TCWS raised as of Saturday afternoon. Classes were also suspended by the LGUs on Friday to ensure the safety of students, teachers, and parents. Data provided by the Surigao City Public
A total of 22 national road sections in Regions 2, 6, 8, 12, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) have been rendered impassable due to severe Tropical Storm Paeng, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) reported Saturday. As of 6 a.m., the DPWH-Bureau of Maintenance (DPWH-BOM) said the affected roads are: – In Luzon: Manila North Road, K0611+680 Claveria Bridge detour in Cagayan due to damaged bridge approach; Cabagan-Sta. Maria Overflow Bridge in Isabela due to high water elevation; La Conwap Detour Road, La Conwap River along Jct Abbag-Nagtipunan-Nueva Vizcaya Road (via Dupax),
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has been stepping up relief operations to assist thousands of families affected by Severe Tropical Storm Paeng. In its Saturday update, the DSWD said it is closely attending to and monitoring the needs of the 97,206 families or 409,455 persons thus far affected by Paeng in 733 barangays in Calabarzon, Bicol, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, Soccsksargen, Caraga, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). Of these numbers, 12,304 families or 48,808 persons are taking temporary shelter in 506 evacuation centers in Calabarzon, Bicol, Western
Core inflation and second-round effects are major economic factors to watch out for in the Philippines, an executive of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said. In a hybrid briefing on Friday for the release of the lender’s Regional Economic Outlook (REO), Shanaka Peiris, Division Chief of Regional Studies of the IMF’s Asia and Pacific Department, noted that the rate of price increases remains higher than the government’s 2- percent to 4 percent target since breaching the target band some months ago. Peiris said the elevated inflation rate is among the factors for the continued hikes in the Bangko
