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Double pay for workers reporting on Holy Week
Workers nationwide may opt to enjoy a long holiday break or hefty pay this Holy Week......»»
Think again before buying bunnies as Easter gifts
SAN DIEGO – With Easter just a week away, animal rescue groups in Southern California are urging people not to buy rabbits as holiday gifts for children. They said that what begins as a well-meaning gesture often leads to abandoned animals when the novelty wears off and families realize they’re not equipped to properly care.....»»
World Poetry Day: Here are some notable Cebuano poets
Today, the world celebrates the beauty of poetry as we acknowledge the mighty power of the pen and commemorate the people who notably held it. As we recall Western literary geniuses like William Shakespeare and Edgar Allan Poe, what better way to celebrate this annual holiday as a Cebuano than to recognize some writers of.....»»
Hotel’s all-day dining outlet offers vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free options
Spectrum, Fairmont Makati’s all-day dining outlet, reopened its doors last month, featuring an upgraded and elegant look with an array of gastronomic delights. Spectrum continues to provide high-quality international buffet complemented with fresh additions and a green dining experience. [caption id="attachment_200866" align="aligncenter" width="548"] CRISPY Pork Belly.[/caption] Explore and rediscover Spectrum’s interactive buffet which brings back the favorites, such as the Australian Prime Beef and Crispy Pork Belly at the carving station, delightful varieties of sushi and sashimi and the much-celebrated Western Station featuring roasted snapper and baked Barramundi. The Seafood corner, Shawarma corner and ice cream teppanyaki are ready to captivate the senses once more. [caption id="attachment_200883" align="aligncenter" width="438"] BBQ Ribs.[/caption] Spectrum also offers as ala minute brick oven pizzas, a new Daily Highlights corner with Philly Cheesesteak and BBQ ribs, an enhanced Asian corner introducing Vietnamese spring roll, Beef Rendang and Laksa soup, plus a dedicated Korean corner with Kimchi rice, Japchae and Bulgogi. The BBQ station now offers a selection of marinates including the Smoky Adventure flavor, Thai-spiced and Italian. Spectrum also introduces the Wellbeing corner, a thoughtful inclusion offering vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free options. Fairmont Makati’s Spectrum all-day dining is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The weekend upgraded buffet has live music entertainment. Sunday lunch features Sabroso Lechon and an extensive charcuterie. For reservations, call 8555 9840 or email dining.makati@fairmont.com. The post Hotel’s all-day dining outlet offers vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free options appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Hawaii fire death toll hits 55, expected to rise
A terrifying wildfire that left a historic Hawaiian town in charred ruins has killed at least 55 people, authorities said Thursday, making it one of the deadliest disasters in the US state's history. Brushfires on the west coast of Hawaii's Maui island -- fueled by high winds from a nearby hurricane -- broke out Tuesday and rapidly engulfed the seaside town of Lahaina. The flames moved so quickly that many were caught off-guard, trapped in the streets or jumping into the ocean in a desperate bid to escape. "It really looks like somebody came along and just bombed the whole town. It's completely devastated," said Canadian Brandon Wilson, who had traveled to Hawaii with his wife to celebrate their 25th anniversary, but was at the airport trying to get them a flight out. "It was really hard to see," he said, teary-eyed. "You feel so bad for people. They lost their homes, their lives, their livelihoods." The fires follow other extreme weather events in North America this summer, with record-breaking wildfires still burning across Canada and a major heat wave baking the US southwest. Europe and parts of Asia have also endured soaring temperatures, with major fires and floods wreaking havoc. "What we've seen today has been catastrophic... likely the largest natural disaster in Hawaii state history," Governor Josh Green said. "In 1960 we had 61 fatalities when a large wave came through Big Island," he said earlier in the day, referring to a tragedy that struck a year after Hawaii became the 50th US state. "This time, it's very likely that our death totals will significantly exceed that." Maui County officials said just after 9:00 pm Thursday (0700 GMT Friday) that fatalities stood at 55, and firefighters were still battling the blaze in the town that served as the Hawaiian kingdom's capital in the early 19th century. Pictures taken by an AFP photographer who flew over Lahaina showed it had been reduced to blackened, smoking ruins. The burned skeletons of trees still stand, rising above the ashes of the buildings to which they once offered shelter. Green said 80 percent of the town was gone. "Buildings that we've all enjoyed and celebrated together for decades, for generations, are completely destroyed," he said. Thousands have been left homeless and Green said a massive operation was swinging into action to find accommodation. "We are going to need to house thousands of people," he told a press conference. "That will mean reaching out to all of our hotels and those in the community to ask people to rent extra rooms at their property." President Joe Biden on Thursday declared the fires a "major disaster" and unblocked federal aid for relief efforts, with rebuilding expected to take years. 'Bodies in the water' US Coast Guard commander Aja Kirksey told CNN around 100 people were believed to have jumped into the water in a desperate effort to flee the fast-moving flames as they tore through Lahaina. Kirksey said helicopter pilots struggled to see because of dense smoke, but that a Coast Guard vessel had been able to rescue more than 50 people from the water. "It was a really rapidly developing scene and pretty harrowing for the victims that had to jump into the water," she added. For resident Kekoa Lansford, the horror was far from over. "We still get dead bodies in the water floating and on the seawall," Lansford told CBS. "We have been pulling people out... We're trying to save people's lives, and I feel like we are not getting the help we need." Green said around 1,700 buildings were believed to have been affected by the blaze. "With lives lost and properties decimated, we are grieving with each other during this inconsolable time," Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said. "In the days ahead, we will be stronger as a... community," he added, "as we rebuild with resilience and aloha." Evacuations Thousands of people have already been evacuated from Maui, with 1,400 people waiting at the main airport in Kahului overnight, hoping to get out. Maui County has asked visitors to leave "as soon as possible," and organized buses to move evacuees from shelters to the airport. The island hosts around a third of all the visitors who holiday in the state, and their dollars are vital for the local economy. At the airport in Kahului, Lorraina Peterson said she had been stuck for days without food or power, and was now looking at a lengthy wait for a flight. "I don't know if we'll be able to get a hotel room, or we'll have to sleep here on the floor," she said. With a hurricane passing to the south of Hawaii, high winds fueled flames that consumed dry vegetation. Thomas Smith, a professor with the London School of Economics, said that while wildfires are not uncommon in Hawaii, the blazes this year "are burning a greater area than usual, and the fire behavior is extreme, with fast spread rates and large flames." As global temperatures rise over time, heat waves are projected to become more frequent, with increased dryness due to changing rainfall patterns creating ideal conditions for bush or forest fires. The post Hawaii fire death toll hits 55, expected to rise appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Algeria battles raging wildfires that have killed 34
Algerian firefighters were Tuesday battling blazes that have killed 34 people across the tinder-dry north, destroyed homes and coastal resorts and turned vast forest areas into blackened wastelands. Witnesses described fleeing walls of flames that raged "like a blowtorch", and TV footage showed charred cars, burnt-out shops and smoldering fields and scrubland as thousands of residents were evacuated. Severe fires raged through the mountain forests of the Kabylia region on the Mediterranean coast, fanned by hot winds amid blistering summer heat that peaked at 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit) Monday. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune sent his condolences to the families of those killed -- among them 10 soldiers trapped by flames at Beni Ksila, in Bejaia province, according to the defense ministry. Authorities reported progress in fighting back the almost 100 fires reported in recent days, having mobilized more than 8,000 civil defense personnel, over 500 fire trucks and multiple chartered aircraft. "Out of 97 declared fires, only 15 remained" at 8:30 am (0730 GMT) Tuesday, including two in worst-hit Bejaia, civil defense information officer Karim Belhafsi said on national television. The interior ministry expected to soon announce "the total extinction of all fires", he said, as the public prosecutor of Bejaia ordered an investigation into the causes of the fires and possible perpetrators. An unknown number of people suffered injuries from burns to smoke inhalation, and more then 1,500 were evacuated as the fires hit 15 provinces, especially Bejaia, Bouira and Jijel. Climate change and drought Much of the water-scarce northern African region has been hit by serious drought, severe summer heat and regular wildfires, a trend expected to worsen as climate change intensifies. Serious fires have also raged in recent days in neighboring Tunisia, especially the northwestern Tabarka region. An AFP team there witnessed significant damage and saw helicopters and Canadair water bombers in action. More than 300 people were evacuated from the coastal village of Melloula by boat and overland. Northern and eastern Algeria battle forest fires every summer. In August last year, 37 people were killed by fires in the northeastern El Tarf region, a year after 90 died, mostly in Kabylia. To prepare for this year's fire season, Algerian authorities deployed observation drones and created multiple helicopter landing sites. The government in May announced the purchase of a large water bomber aircraft and the rental of six others from South America. Algeria also placed an order with Russia for four water bombers, but reported that their delivery was delayed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The post Algeria battles raging wildfires that have killed 34 appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Israel braces for unrest over divisive judicial reform
Israel braced for fresh strikes and protests Tuesday following a divisive parliamentary vote on a controversial judicial reform which has split the nation and drawn criticism from allies abroad. The decision by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right government to push through a key plank of its reforms on Monday has already sparked legal challenges and clashes on the streets. Opponents were set to keep up months of protests on Tuesday, with doctors walking out. "The hand, extended for dialogue, was left hanging in the air, as victory celebrations took place symbolizing above all a war that only has losers," the head of the Israel Medical Association, Zion Hagay, said in a statement announcing the walkout. The move came after the Histadrut trade union confederation threatened a repeat of the general strike it called in March over the reforms. The Israel Bar Association was among numerous groups to file petitions to the Supreme Court aiming to strike down the new legislation. "A black day for Israeli democracy," read the blackened front pages of three of the country's top newspapers on Tuesday, carrying an advert by opponents of the judicial reforms. Protesters remained on the streets late into the night following the vote, with student Josh Hakim saying he was "really, really sad about what's happening to this country". "You see what is happening on the streets, everyone is so angry," he told AFP at a rally near parliament in Jerusalem. Some 58 people were arrested at demonstrations, the police said, among them protesters in Tel Aviv, which has become the focal point of one of the country's largest ever protest movements. Police said one person was arrested for allegedly harming demonstrators, with protest organisers saying he drove a car into people blocking a highway. Officers used water cannon to disperse protesters on a major road through Tel Aviv, where the crowd waved Israeli flags. Opposition slams 'puppet' PM Netanyahu failed to appease opponents with a televised address late Monday, in which he pledged to hold talks during the upcoming parliamentary recess. "Reach a comprehensive agreement on everything and we will add more time should it be needed," he said. The embattled premier showed signs of fatigue in the chamber, as he sat between his defense and justice ministers just a day after unscheduled surgery to fit a pacemaker. Netanyahu defended the new law, which limits the powers of the Supreme Court in striking down government decisions, as a "necessary democratic step". Deep divisions within his own coalition and mass protests prompted the premier to temporarily halt the legislative process in March, but within weeks politicians were blaming each other for the breakdown in negotiations. On Monday, the opposition walked out of the chamber to boycott the vote, which passed with 64 votes in the 120-seat chamber. Opposition chief Yair Lapid slammed Netanyahu's "unprecedented performance of weakness". "There is no prime minister in Israel. Netanyahu has become a puppet of messianic extremists," he said, a reference to the premier's far-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish allies. The political instability has raised alarm among Israel's allies abroad. The White House described the vote as "unfortunate". A German foreign ministry source said: "We look with great concern at the deepening tensions in Israeli society." The post Israel braces for unrest over divisive judicial reform appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Four dead after latest New York e-bike fire
Four people have died after lithium batteries for e-bikes sparked a fire in a New York building, officials said Tuesday, sounding the alarm over the skyrocketing number of such incidents. The fire broke out overnight in a maintenance shop for electric bicycles and scooters, on the ground floor of a building in Chinatown. A large pile of blackened two-wheelers was seen strewn outside the charred facility on Tuesday, in a photo posted by New York Fire Department on their official Twitter account. During a press briefing at the scene, the city's fire commissioner, Laura Kavanagh, said four people had died and two were seriously injured. "It is very clear that this was caused by lithium ion batteries and e-bikes," she said, adding that the store had previously been cited for safety violations. It is the 108th such fire so far this year in New York, with a total toll of 66 injured and 13 dead, including Tuesday's victims, according to the fire department. In April, a 19-year-old woman and her seven-year-old brother were killed in a similar fire in the borough of Queens. Fires related to e-bikes and scooters in New York have grown exponentially in recent years, from 44 in 2020 to 220 last year, as residents buy more of the electric devices -- especially for the city's highly popular meal delivery services. Batteries are more likely to combust if they are of poor quality or older age, or if they are packed together during charging. When they ignite, "there is so much fire created that it can often be too late as soon as the fire has begun," Kavanaugh said. The post Four dead after latest New York e-bike fire appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Thousands ordered to flee advancing wildfires in Quebec
Canada is facing a catastrophic spring wildfire season with massive and powerful blazes out of control in all corners of the country, and thousands more people displaced on Friday. "This is a scary time for a lot of people from coast to coast to coast," said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, alluding to the vastness of a nation on fire stretching from the Pacific to the Atlantic to the Arctic oceans. Some 10,000 people on Friday were ordered to evacuate from Sept Iles in Quebec in the face of advancing wildfires. Steve Beaupre, mayor of the small city on the St. Lawrence River, declared a local state of emergency and announced the mandatory evacuation after nearby wildfires "advanced very quickly" overnight. Residents were told in the morning to vacate their homes by 4 pm local time (2100 GMT). Stephane Lauzon, a member of Parliament from Quebec, told a news conference in Ottawa that as many as 10,000 residents, or one-third of the population of Sept Iles, would be displaced. This followed the evacuation on Thursday of 500 residents of Chapais in the north of the province. "The situation is quickly changing in Quebec," Lauzon said, adding that about 100 fires, "many more than yesterday," were burning in the province, including about 20 out of control. Canada has been hit repeatedly by extreme weather in recent years, the intensity and frequency of which have increased due to global warming. Across Canada more than 210 fires were burning on Friday after scorching more than 2.7 million hectares (6.7 million acres). A total of 29,000 people had been evacuated before Friday's order. After major flareups in the west of the country in May, notably in the Prairies provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan, firefighting shifted in the past week to Nova Scotia on the Atlantic coast. Officials hoped rain and cooler temperatures in forecasts for the weekend following a record-breaking heat wave will bring relief. "Weather has favoured the fires all week, not the firefighters. We're hopeful that this will soon change," Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston told a briefing. "We need rain. Hopefully that rain comes in sufficient amounts this weekend." Almost 1,000 firefighters from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States also arrived or were en route to bolster firefighting efforts. And Ottawa was deploying the military in Nova Scotia and Quebec to help out, officials said. In Halifax, the largest city in Nova Scotia, busloads of suburban residents were taken on tours for a first glimpse of devastated neighborhoods. In a video shared by local media, people on the bus could be heard trying to identify items burned or melted. "I think that was my car," a woman says when it stops at the end of a long driveway. Jason Young told reporters it was "pretty surreal" to see the blackened wooded lots and smoking debris. "The house is gone. The shed is gone. Everything's gone. On our property, there's nothing left. It's completely gone," he said. Others weren't ready yet to take it all in. "If I see my property I want to do it with my family, by ourselves, and be able to physically go in and (maybe) sort through stuff," Jody Stuart said, aware that he has lost everything. About 200 homes, as well as a wooden bridge and a historic private Halifax club founded in 1908, have been destroyed and nearly 20,000 residents have been displaced by wildfires in Nova Scotia. A few were allowed to return home on Friday after more than a week away. Houston lamented the "many, many lives turned upside down" by fires, noting a number of people "responding to the fires are evacuees themselves and it's absolutely heartbreaking." But he also expressed solace: "Though all this despair, zero deaths, zero missing persons, zero serious injuries." The post Thousands ordered to flee advancing wildfires in Quebec appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Beijing hospital fire death toll rises to 29
Chinese authorities said on Wednesday they had detained a dozen people over a hospital fire in Beijing that left at least 29 dead and forced desperate survivors to jump out of windows to escape. The blaze, which broke out on Tuesday afternoon at the Changfeng Hospital in China's capital, killed mostly patients, and left scores of other people injured. Dramatic footage posted to social media showed people clinging to ropes and jumping from the building, while others perched on external air conditioning units in a desperate bid to shelter from the flames. The Fengtai district's deputy mayor expressed his "deep condolences" over the deaths of the 16 women and 13 men killed in the inferno, the deadliest in Beijing in over two decades. "We feel deep remorse and guilt," Li Zongrong told journalists as he announced the toll at a press conference on Wednesday. "I hereby express our deep condolences for the victims, and express our sincere respects to the victims' families, the injured and their relatives, and apologise to the people of the whole city," he said. Twelve people, including the hospital's director, have been detained in connection with the fire, said Sun Haitao from Beijing's public security bureau, adding that representatives from a company renovating the facility were among those being held. A preliminary probe revealed the blaze had been caused by "sparks generated during the internal renovation and construction of the inpatient department of the hospital", according to Zhao Yang from the city fire brigade. The sparks "ignited the volatile elements of the flammable paint on the site", Zhao said. 39 hospitalized State broadcaster CCTV reported that out of the dead, 26 were patients at the hospital, two were hospital staff and one was a patient's family member. State-run People's Daily reported that as of Wednesday morning 39 people were being treated in hospital with injuries, and another three had been discharged. Top city officials visited the hospital shortly after the fire, which broke out at around 1 pm on Tuesday and was extinguished half an hour later. Beijing party secretary Yin Li vowed to "quickly identify the cause of the accident and hold the relevant responsible persons accountable", according to the Beijing Daily. AFP journalists on Wednesday saw dozens of people outside the entrance to the hospital, where a large number of police officers were stationed. Some of the hospital's windows appeared blackened and at least one was broken. The facade of one of the hospital buildings was completely blackened by soot. AFP journalists saw people who appeared to be investigators taking photos from inside the blackened building, with the interior visibly damaged by the flames. Many family members lost contact with patients in the aftermath of the disaster, the China Youth Daily said in a separate report on Wednesday, adding that many of them were elderly people with mobility problems. A police officer on the scene on Wednesday told AFP the city "will probably make the appropriate arrangements" to take care of victims' relatives. The hospital is located in the capital's western urban area, about 25 minutes by car from Tiananmen Square. Deadly fires are common in China due to weak safety standards and lax enforcement. Tuesday's tragedy was the deadliest in the Chinese capital since a June 2002 fire at an internet cafe killed 25 students. Ten people died in an apartment block blaze in northwestern Xinjiang in November, sparking protests against Covid-19 lockdowns blamed for hindering rescue efforts. And 38 people were killed in a fire at a factory in central China, also in November, with authorities blaming workers for illegal welding. The post Beijing hospital fire death toll rises to 29 appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Cyprus mountain villagers in shock after deadly wildfire
Villagers in the Troodos mountains of Cyprus looked in shock Sunday at their blackened hillsides after a deadly fire fanned by high temperatures and strong winds......»»
Bus passenger sets conductor on fire
MANILA, Philippines — What would have been an ordinary commute in Quezon City took a deadly turn on Sunday afternoon after a bus passenger doused the conductor on the vehicle with gasoline and set her ablaze, killing them both. The hourlong fire, which also injured four others, reduced the green bus into a blackened metal […] The post Bus passenger sets conductor on fire appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»