Maniolas

Hagupit ni bagyong Mario sa Ilocos Norte. Hindi pa naitatala ang halaga ng pinsala sa mga ari-aran at agrikultura na dulot ng pananalasa ng bagyong Mario na nagpamalas ng bagsik sa loob ng 10 oras mula hatinggabi nong Biyernes hanggang umaga nitong Sabado, Setyembre 20. Hadji Rieta Some classes on Monday, September 22, will remain suspended in some areas in the country even as Tropical Storm Mario (International Name: Fung-Wong) moved farther away from the country. Region 1– Ilocos Norte, preschool to high school– Ilocos Sur (All Levels) National Capital Region Classes are also suspended in the following barangays in Valenzuela City:– Wawang pulo– Balangkas– Parancillo Villa– Palasan– Arkong Bato– Pulo– Poblacion– Mabolo– Coloong– Isla– Tagalag– Bisig– Malanday– Pasolo– Rincon– Dalandanan– Pinalagad Elementary School State weather forecasters on Sunday afternoon said that the tropical storm moved farther away from the country, but the Southwest Monsoon (Habagat) continues to threaten Batanes. — Rouchelle Dinglasan/JST, GMA News

President Benigno S.C. Aquino will discuss the Philippines’ territorial dispute with China during his five-day US visit after rallying European support for the use of international arbitration to resolve the issue, Manila’s top diplomat in the US said Sunday. According to Philippine ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Aquino will tackle the subject in his scheduled speeches at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government in Massachusetts and at Columbia University in New York. “The reason the President is very confident to speak about it [is] not only because he knows the issue very well, but [because] we have very strong grounds for advancing our position,” Cuisia said in a press statement issued by the Presidential Communications Operations Office on Sunday. The Philippines and China have a long-standing territorial dispute over several islands, islets, and atolls in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), which were believed to be rich in natural resources. The tension escalated in April 2012, when Manila and Beijing became locked in a standoff at Scarborough Shoal (Panatag Shoal) after Chinese vessels prevented Philippine authorities from arresting Chinese fishermen allegedly poaching in the shoal. This led to the country’s filing a case against China at the Netherlands-based Permanent Court of Arbitration operating under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNLCOS). China, on the other hand, rejected the country’s case filing. Earlier, Beijing turned down multilateral negotiations in resolving the territorial issue, saying it preferred bilateral talks. During his eight-day European trip, Read More …

Agence France-Presse 1:39 pm | Sunday, September 21st, 2014 TAIPEI — Tropical storm Fung-Wong, which left 10 dead in the Philippines, on Sunday pounded Taiwan with torrential downpours and strong winds, forcing the cancellation of dozens of flights and ferry services. Source: Project Noah | 01:01 pm, September 21, 2014 The defence ministry has ordered 48,000 soldiers to be on stand-by while fishing boats were advised to seek shelter at ports. Fung-Wong (locally named Mario in the Philippines) scrapped the southern tip of the island around 10:00 am (0200 GMT) after it veered east away from its forecast route, the Central Weather Bureau said. The storm brought torrential rains and strong winds which whipped high waves off the south coast, forcing thousands of tourists and surfers to leave the popular Kenting area. Packing winds of 90 kilometers (56 miles) per hour, Fung-Wong had dumped up to 60 centimeters (24 inches) of rain as it tracked north-northeast, the bureau said. “As heavy rains could trigger landslides, people should stay away from the mountainous areas,” a weather forecaster from the bureau said as the authorities evacuated more than 1,200 residents from areas prone to mudslides. A total of 57 domestic and seven international flights were cancelled and ferry services to the offshore islands and mainland China were also suspended, according to the Central Emergency Operation Center. Kaohsiung was on alert as authorities deployed water pumps to the main southern city, which is still recovering from a huge blast which killed 30 people Read More …

Hagupit ni bagyong Mario sa Ilocos Norte. Hindi pa naitatala ang halaga ng pinsala sa mga ari-aran at agrikultura na dulot ng pananalasa ng bagyong Mario na nagpamalas ng bagsik sa loob ng 10 oras mula hatinggabi nong Biyernes hanggang umaga nitong Sabado, Setyembre 20. Hadji Rieta The death toll from Tropical Storm Mario (Fung-Wong) rose to 10 as of early Sunday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said. In its 6 a.m. update, the NDRRMC also said the damage caused by Mario was estimated at more than P144 million so far, including agriculture and infrastructure. The NDRRMC said the most recent fatalities included: – Hermegildo Duma, 58, drowning, found in Marikina– Eduardo Lelis, 60, Sipocot, Camarines Sur, drowning– Conrado Bergonio, Ragay, Camarines Sur, drowning– Ernesto Guevarra, 55, Quezon City, drowning– John Pabello Faller, 19, Taytay, Rizal, drowning The NDRRMC also said one of the earlier fatalities was identified as Siegfried Nathan Arcilla, 22, who was electrocuted. His family previously asked that he not be named. Also, it said at least seven were injured. Damage The NDRRMC said 90 houses were destroyed while 509 were damaged in Ilocos, Central and Southern Luzon, and Cordillera. Damage to property was estimated at P144,066,165, including agriculture and infrastructure. A breakdown includes: – P48,476,165 in agriculture including P45 million in rice, P67,500 in corn and P2,583,665 in high-value commercial crops and P650,000 in fisheries and P175,000 in livestock– P1,850,000 in infrastructure in Banna, Ilocos Norte– P2,400,000 in infrastructure in Pangasinan– P91.34 million Read More …

By Christian V. Esguerra |Philippine Daily Inquirer 2:44 am | Sunday, September 21st, 2014 President Benigno S. Aquino III at a forum in Berlin with members of the Philippine media before he left for Boston. Malacañang Photo Bureau BERLIN—Mission accomplished. President Benigno Aquino III ended his weeklong European trip on Saturday convinced that he had gathered enough support behind the Philippines’ call for a peaceful resolution of conflicts in the South China Sea, particularly through international arbitration. “The short answer is yes,” he told reporters over coffee at 8 p.m. on Friday here (3 a.m. Saturday in Manila) when asked if he felt he had achieved the goal of his four-nation tour of Europe. With Spain (which has offered to be the Philippines’ voice in the European Union), Belgium, France and Germany all seeking a resolution of the territorial disputes through processes provided under international law, the President said it was time to “get to a stage where we have reasonable and doable objectives.” Mr. Aquino said he had been told by some of his European counterparts that they had been asking Beijing about its claim to 90 percent of the 3.5-million-square-kilometer South China Sea. He said another point of inquiry was “adherence” to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos). “There seems to be a push,” he said. One of the most categorical statements came from German Chancellor Angela Merkel who described “international dispute settlement arrangements that we have on the basis of Unclos” as Read More …