Typhoon Fengshen capsized MV Princess of Stars in Philippine waters, according to two survivors who struggled to shore Sunday.

There were more than 740 passengers on board while Senator Richard Gordon asked U.S. authorities for help in finding survivors. A rescue ship reached the ferry Sunday, one end jutting out of the water upside-down and there were no signs of survivors on site. Only four people on board were confirmed to have reached the shore alive.

In a nearby village, 6 bodies were found which included a man and a woman who bound themselves together. While officials were checking reports that survivors might have reached a nearby island, relatives of those onboard are silently weeping and praying, hoping for news of missing loved ones.

A janitor on the ship, Reynato Lanoria, estimated approximately 100 people could have survived but claimed that others were trapped inside. He believed that they may be dead by now as most of them were not as lucky as he was when he jumped in the water and reached a life raft. According to him, it was around 11:30 a.m. Saturday when they were ordered to put on life vests. About 30 minutes later, the ferry tilted and people were thrown off, falling into the water.

Another survivor, Jesus Gica, claimed that many of them jumped overboard but were separated because of the large waves. Although there were also people who boarded life rafts, some were not able to make it because the strong winds flipped the rafts over.

As the typhoon continues to ravage the Philippines, several areas were also victims of flooding and damage. Here is a video of the storm’s impact on the region.

Tags: ferry sinks,MV Princess of the Stars,Philippines,typhoon Fengshen
Categories: News
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As of 11:00 P.M. June 17, 2008, broadcaster Ces Drilon, her cameraman Jimmy Encarnacion and Professor Dinampo, have been freed by their bandit kidnappers in Indanan, Sulu. A few hours after the freed hostages were delivered to Mayor Isnaji’s son, they were flown via a Huey helicopter to a military camp for debriefing. All negotiators, including Senator Loren Legarda, as well as military and police officials vehemently denied payment of the P15 million ransom demanded earlier, but of course, that could also be part of the whole negotiation/agreement, we don’t really know.

How Newscaster Ces Became the News

Drilon was laughing and crying during the initial press conference, visibly happy and relieved despite her wretched appearance. She thanked all the negotiators, her peers in the media and her Kapamilya network for all the help and prayers. She was also very apologetic to her superiors and local military commanders “for being stubborn and failing to follow protocols” and to her family and the families of her crew for subjecting them to this ordeal.

“I’ve been in and out of Mindanao, and I want to understand the situation here. Sa kasamaang palad (Unfortunately), there was some betrayal involved, and we were kidnapped,” she told reporters early Wednesday in Zamboanga City.

She refused to get into the details but simply said, “We’ll get there. We are cooperating with the investigation and we condemn [the kidnappers] for what they did.”

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Tags: ,ABS-CBN Broacasting Corporation,Abu Sayyaf Group,Ces Drilon,Filipino broadcaster kidnapped,Jimmy Encarnacion,kidnap for ransom,Loren Legarda,Philippines
Categories: News, TV
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In the latest preliminary police report on the Glorietta 2 Mall explosion, the authorities have expressed serious doubts that the incident was a bombing attack as earlier reported. As there was no bomb crater nor fragments of improvised bomb explosive device found at the scene, the theory is that it might very well in fact be due to the “accidental mixing of diesel vapor and methane gas in the mall’s basement”. If this information is to be believed, then the criminal liability (for negligence) will now be shifted to both the mall owner and the city government. On the other hand, the Ayala Land spokesperson has vehemently defended against the initial police findings that the diesel fuel tanks and sewerage system of the mall was the cause of the explosion. As of writing, Makati Mayor Binay has reportedly ordered a separate and independent investigation to determine the real cause of the explosion.

While finger-pointing seems to be a trend nowadays, the inescapable truth remains that several innocent lives were taken and hundreds were injured and perhaps, will be scarred for life. And while the real cause of the blast remains a mystery, we will have to rely upon several photos that were taken at the scene immediately after the incident, to draw our sad conclusions. The snapshots shown below provide evidence of the extent of the damage to the building and the vehicles parked around the area, as well as some of the lifeless bodies buried under the rubbles of Glorietta 2. These photos do not lie, and say only one thing, and that is: a crime was committed, and someone has to pay for it.

[Click thumbnail to enlarge image. Warning: some photos can be very graphic]

Properties damaged

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Tags: Ayala,Ayala land,blast,blast photos,bombing,gas leak,Glorietta 2,Glorietta 2 bombing photos,mall bombing,Philippines,terrorism,terrorist attack
Categories: News, Pinoy Life
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Forty-four days after former Philippine President Joseph “Erap” Ejercito Estrada has been convicted by the Sandiganbayan guilty beyond reasonable doubt for the crime of plunder, the deposed President is now set to accept and sign the order of executive clemency issued last night by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, current President of the Philippines. Previously, the legal team representing Erap withdrew the Motion for Reconsideration which they filed 15 days after the conviction was promulgated, and instead sent a petition letter to GMA asking for presidential pardon. The lady President didn’t waste time and just a few days after, issued the clemency with a condition that Mr. Estrada will distance himself from politics from hereon.

When the conviction first came out in September 12, 2007, I surely believed that an executive pardon is far from happening, at least not in the next 4 years, not when GMA is still the President. I was dead wrong, because it didn’t even take 4 months, but barely 44 days and now the “agreement” is a done deal.

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Tags: Erap Estrada,executive clemency,Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo,Joseph Estrada,Philippines,plunder,Politics,presidential pardon
Categories: News, Pinoy Life, Politics
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