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‘DepEd acting on senior high school voucher discrepancies’
The Department of Education is acting on supposed discrepancies in the voucher program under the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education......»»
Thousands stuck in mud at Burning Man festival, one dead
Tens of thousands of festival-goers were stranded Sunday in deep mud in the Nevada desert after rain turned the annual Burning Man gathering into a quagmire, with police investigating one death. Video footage showed costume-wearing "burners" struggling across the wet gray-brown site, some using trash bags as makeshift boots, while many vehicles were stuck in the sludge. All events at the counterculture festival, which drew some 70,000 people, were canceled after rain tore down structures for dance parties, art installations and other entertainment. Police said they were probing one death, without giving further details. Road gates in and out of the Black Rock City venue were closed, but some desperate attendees trudged on foot for hours to reach the nearest road and hitch a lift out. "It was an incredibly harrowing 6 mile (10 kilometer) hike at midnight through heavy and slippery mud, but I got safely out," lawyer Neal Katyal said on social media. "It is very slippery and the mud is like cement and sticks to your boots. "No one should try this unless in good shape and part of a group. These are dangerous conditions to hike and will likely get worse." Festival crowds were asked to shelter in place and conserve food and water after the heavy rains started Friday night, with more downpours forecast on Sunday. "You can't really walk or drive," a young woman with dreadlocks named Christine Lee, a circus performer, said on TikTok. Internet service was not available or patchy, she said. "My boots are five inches, and the mud became five inches so I was kind of on stilts," Lee said, adding people were being told they may be stuck until Tuesday. "We have enough tuna for a week so we're OK." A video posted on social media showed comedian Chris Rock hitching a ride in the back of a pickup truck after managing to leave. Pershing County Sheriff’s Sargent Nathan Carmichael told CNN the conditions are difficult. The muck "seems to stick to people, stick to tires (and) makes it very, very difficult to move vehicles around," he said, adding that most RV motorhomes were stranded. Organizers urged festivalgoers to "conserve food, water and fuel, and shelter in a warm, safe space," saying the "playa" -- the huge open-air esplanade where the event unfolds -- was impassable. "Look out for your neighbors, introduce yourself," they added. The festival was scheduled to conclude on Monday. 'Survival guide' The organizers warned only some four-wheel drive vehicles with all-terrain tires were able to move. "Anything less than that will get stuck. It will hamper exodus if we have cars stuck on roads in our camping areas, or on the Gate Road out of the city," they said on a "2023 Wet Playa Survival Guide" special webpage. If necessary, they said it was possible to walk to the nearest road, where buses would be provided to take people to Reno. Mobile cellphone trailers were being deployed and the site's wireless internet was opened for public access. "We have done table-top drills for events like this. We are engaged full-time on all aspects of safety," organizers said. Last year, the festival contended with an intense heat wave and strong winds. Launched in 1986 in San Francisco, Burning Man aims to be an undefinable event, somewhere between a celebration of counterculture and a spiritual retreat. The festival -- for which tickets cost hundreds of dollars -- culminates each year with the ceremonial burning of a 40-foot (12-meter) effigy. It has been held since the 1990s in the Black Rock Desert, a protected area in northwest Nevada, which the organizers are committed to preserving. The post Thousands stuck in mud at Burning Man festival, one dead appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Belmonte one with world leaders vs plastic
“Let us recognize the power of cities, acknowledge our accomplishments, and empower us with the necessary tools to continue championing the call against plastic pollution. Together, we can forge a future where this is but a distant memory and our planet thrives in its full glory." This was the message delivered by Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, chosen as the sole representative of local chief executives worldwide, during the high-level event organized by the French Government and the United Nations Environment Programme in Paris, France. Belmonte expressed the cities’ call to national leaders to consider their needs in passing the UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution (Plastic Treaty) and expressed the collective hopes and ambitions of cities across the globe to address the plastic waste crisis. Like Quezon City, other cities are also experiencing the adverse impacts of plastic pollution including flooding from clogged sewers, air quality impacts from burning plastics, and the challenge of managing vast amounts of plastic waste. To address these problems, Quezon City has initiated significant measures such as prohibiting single-use plastic bags and disposable cutleries, straws, and cups in restaurants and fast food chains for dine-in customers; and banning single-use containers and sachets in hotels. In 2021, the city established the Trash to Cashback program to recover plastic waste from the waste stream, especially low-value plastics. Residents will bring their recyclables and single-use plastics to designated areas in exchange for environmental points which they can use to purchase groceries and pay utility bills. However, according to Belmonte, these efforts are still inadequate to fully address the challenges of the plastic waste crisis. “While we as cities are proud of our respective achievements, we recognize that we cannot address the plastic waste crisis alone. We need a truly ambitious global plastics treaty that unifies our efforts and sets a high bar for all nations to follow,” the mayor explained. Belmonte stressed the provisions that world mayors want to be included in the treaty including the total ban on unnecessary plastics and adoption of reusable items; the creation of a financial mechanism to help cities shift harmful consumption patterns into an innovative and sustainable one; and strengthened collaboration with cities in the negotiation process of the treaty to ensure realistic and implementable programs. Aside from Belmonte, other speakers in the event include French Minister for Europe, and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna, French Minister for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion of France Christophe Béchu, United Nations Environment Programme Executive Director Inger Andersen, Marine Biology Professor of the University of Plymouth Prof. Richard Thompson, Ellen MacArthur Foundation Executive Head for Plastics and Finance program Rob Opsomer, World Wide Fund for Nature International Correspondent Marc Lambertini, and children and youth representative Zuhair Ahmed Kowshik. Earlier, Belmonte and leaders of local and regional governments issued their detailed vision on the treaty during the Paris International Forum to End Plastic Pollution in Cities. Mayor Belmonte and Quezon City Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability Department Head Andrea Villaroman are attending the High-Level Event to End Plastic Pollution. They have joined delegates from leading cities in the world and international partners including UNEP, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Ellen McArthur Foundation, World Wide Fund for Nature, World Economic Forum, United Nations Development Programme, and UN-Habitat. The post Belmonte one with world leaders vs plastic appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Environmental defenders found after reported abduction in Pangasinan
Reports said that Dangla and Tiong were “severely mauled and dragged” into a waiting vehicle on Sunday evening in Barangay Polo, San Carlos City......»»
Philippines logs 40 pertussis deaths this year
MANILA, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Forty children have died of whopping cough, a respiratory infection also called pertussis, since this year, the Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) has reported. The DOH said in a statement on Wednesday that cases have continued to increase since the start of this year, recording 568 cases from Jan. 1 to March 16. "The total number of cases for the same period in 2023 was.....»»
Catch-up Fridays eased for teachers
JENIELITO "Dodong" Atillo, spokesperson of the Department of Education (DepEd-Davao), clarified during the AFP-PNP press conference held on Wednesday morning, March 27, 2024, at the Royal Mandaya Hotel, that the implementation of “Catch-up Fridays” has been streamlined to alleviate any perceived burden on teachers......»»
Hope for more survivors from Baltimore bridge collapse fades
BALTIMORE – The coast guard announced on Wednesday that hope of finding more survivors of the Baltimore bridge collapse has dimmed, and efforts have switched to searching for the bodies of the missing persons, as well as seeking more answers as to why a container ship crashed into the span. The coast guard announced on.....»»
Pertussis or whooping cough: 40 child deaths so far this year – DOH
MANILA, Philippines — Assistant Health Secretary Albert Domingo reported on Wednesday that as of March 16 this year, some 40 children had died of whooping cough — a respiratory infection also called pertussis. An increase in new pertussis cases nationwide had been observed nationwide, with 28 cases reported from March 10 to 16. READ: What.....»»
Victims of Baltimore bridge collapse include those from Mexico, Guatemala
Maryland [US], March 27 (ANI): Among those reported missing following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in the US are Mexican nationals, CNN reported, citing Rafael Laveaga, Chief of the Consular Section of Mexico's Embassy in Washington. Laveaga refrained from specifying the exact number of missing Mexican nationals when he addressed reporters near the scene on Tuesday. A reporter asked Laveaga: ".....»»
Philippine scientists harassed by China helicopter
Another case of harassment at sea by the Chinese has been reported – this time near Pag-Asa Island last Saturday – involving a helicopter, which hovered dangerously close to a group of Filipino scientists doing research work on a sand bar called Sandy Cay, causing minor injuries......»»
Fake booking scams up – ACG
Fake booking scams increased in the second week of March, the Anti-Cybercrime Group of the Philippine National Police reported yesterday......»»
Ched-Davao: Quake drill not just ‘procedural activity’ but necessity
AN OFFICIAL from the Commission on Higher Education-Davao Region (Ched-Davao) said that there is a need to prepare students for disasters and other calamities......»»
Philippines lodges strong protest with China over water cannon attack in disputed South China Sea
Manila [Philippines], March 25 (ANI): In the wake of accusation by the Philippines that the Chinese Coast Guard wounded three of its soldiers during a water cannon attack in the disputed South China Sea, Manila on Monday summoned Beijing's envoy to lodge its strong protest, Al Jazeera reported. The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs, in a statement said that Manila conveyed its "strong protest against the aggressiv.....»»
One more city in Philippines declares pertussis outbreak
MANILA, March 25 (Xinhua) -- The government of Iloilo, a city in central Philippines, on Monday declared an outbreak of pertussis after it confirmed seven out of 15 reported cases, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said. Iloilo is the third city to declare an outbreak of pertussis, or whopping cough, after Quezon and Pasig, two cities in the capital region, announced last week that they hav.....»»
Man-made disasters cost Philippines 164.87 mln USD in 2023
MANILA, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Man-made disasters caused the total damage in the Philippines worth 9.29 billion pesos (164.87 million U.S. dollars) in 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said Tuesday. The agency said that out of the total annual damage, 4.93 billion pesos (87.5 million dollars), or 53.1 percent, was due to the oil spill. "The reported oil spill in various regions resulted in dam.....»»
Philippine scientists harassed by China helicoper
Another case of harassment at sea by the Chinese has been reported – this time near Pag-Asa Island last Saturday – involving a helicopter, which hovered dangerously close to a group of Filipino scientists doing research work on a sand bar called Sandy Cay, causing minor injuries......»»
Probe continues to determine fault in Cotabato van-truck collision
Investigators are still trying to establish who between two drivers was at fault in Monday’s collision of a van and a dump truck that both burst into flames in an accident in Antipas, Cotabato that resulted in the death of 17 individuals......»»
Mayor orders probe on alleged consumption of confiscated fish by CLO Enforcement Team
Mayor orders probe on alleged consumption of confiscated fish by CLO Enforcement Team.....»»
NEWS BRIEFS | 25 March 2024
Senate eyes probe of resorts within the slopes of Mt. Apo Following the controversy involving the establishment of a resort reportedly within the famed Chocolate Hills in Bohol province, Senator Raffy Tulfo, chair of the Senate Committees on Energy and Migrant Workers, is setting his sights on the resorts located on the slopes of Mt. […].....»»
Braving the Heat
BRAVING THE HEAT. Workers install a platform in front of the San Pedro Cathedral in Davao City on Monday, 25 March 2024. The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office reported that the city's heat index reached 43 degrees Celsius at 1 p.m. the same day. The platform is in preparation for Easter Sunday's "Salubong" mass. MindaNews photo.....»»