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Due to alleged drunkenness, a laborer drowned in a river in Purok Mina-ulan, Brgy. Santa Rosa, Murcia, Negros Occidental, on Tuesday, Dec. 17.Ronel Alpas, 35, of Brgy. Santa Rosa drowned after he was carried by the strong current, the police reported.Police investigation revealed that on Dec. 16 the victim asked permission from his wife to swim in the river near their house.While he was in the river, he was swept by a sudden strong current and because of his drunkenness he was not able to swim to safety, the report said.A search and retrieval operation was conducted and the victim was later found by the members of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office of Murcia.The victim was brought to the Murcia Health Unit where he was pronounced dead, the ...

BacCHP focal person Mae Cuaycong (right), medical director Dr. Edwin Miraflor Jr. (left) and special consultant for health Dr. Eric Saratan receive the city’s certificate and trophy during the Excellence in Local Governance Awards 2024.* The Bacolod City Comprehensive Health Program (BacCHP) has been recognized for Excellence in Health Compliance and Responsiveness during the Excellence in Local Governance (EXCELL) Awards 2024 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) 6 (Western Visayas) held in Iloilo City on Tuesday.BacCHP focal person Mae Cuaycong said the recognition validates the efforts of the administration of Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez in creating a program that provides accessible health care services to Bacolodnons.“Some people said that BacCH...

Maj. Gen. Marion R. Sison, 3ID Commander*The Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry (Spearhead) Division reported 16 encounters resulting to the neutralization of 116 members of the New People’s Army in 2024 in its 4th Quarter Campaign Progress Assessment on Tuesday, Dec. 17.Maj. Gen. Marion R. Sison, 3ID Commander, reported that they conducted 11 major and 5 minor encounters against NPA groups resulting to the neutralization of 116 rebels, including top leaders and high-value individuals.These encounters also resulted to the seizure of 145 assorted firearms, he said.Sison said these counter-insurgency efforts led to the declaration of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Antique as Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPs) areas.These accomplishments earned the 3ID the...

The damaged canopy at the municipal hall.* photos courtesy of Mayor Daph Reliquias*A strong earthquake shook Hinoba-an town in southern Negros Occidental causing some residents to panic and run out of offices and homes at 3:37 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 17, Mayor Daph Reliquias said.“The earthquake was short but very strong, it was felt by the entire town and neighboring areas,” he said.The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said a magnitude 5.2 earthquake, which it later corrected to be 4.8, hit Hinoba-an at 3:37 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 17.It was tectonic in origin and was felt at Intensity V in Hinoba-an, it said.Phivolcs said an Intensity V quake is strong and is generally felt by most people indoors and outdoors.“Many sleeping people are awake...

The Commission on Elections in the Negros Island Region (Comelec-NIR) is bracing for a worst-case scenario in the event of a “major” eruption of Mt. Kanlaon, which could disrupt the May 2025 elections in high-risk areas of Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental.Comelec-NIR Regional Election Director Lionel Marco Castillano on Monday, Dec. 17, emphasized their readiness to respond to the situation.He said the Comelec has previously experienced a similar situation where an election had to be postponed due to “force majeur”, citing the Marawi and Zamboanga sieges.If the current conditions prevail or worsen by the time of the election next year and “rehabilitation will not be possible, then there will be a postponement,” he said.Castillano explained that under the Omnibus E...

The Canlaon City evacuees*The mass evacuation of residents living in the 6-kilometer expanded danger zone surrounding the crater of Mt. Kanlaon in Negros Island has been completed, the head of Task Force Kanlaon (TFK) said on Tuesday, Dec. 17.Director Raul Fernandez, TFK and Office of Civil Defense Western Visayas head, said the evacuation in Canlaon City in Negros Oriental had been completed on Tuesday.Negros Occidental had completed its evacuation on Monday.The Office of Civil Defense on Tuesday said 4,629 families with 15,512 individuals had been evacuated in Bago City, La Carlota City and La Castellana in Negros Occidental and in Canlaon City in Negros Oriental.HELP NEEDEDOfficials of the three cities and one town where mass evacuations took place have expressed concer...

Kanlaon Volcano's pyroclastic density current (PDC) deposits  as seen during an aerial survey on Tuesday.* Richard Malihan photoExpected rain this week could cause a high volume of lahar flow due to pyroclastic density current (PDC) deposits on the southeastern slope of Kanlaon Volcano, Director Raul Fernandez, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Western Visayas head, said on Tuesday, Dec. 17.The lahar flow would mostly hit La Castellana and La Carlota City and parts of Bago City, Canlaon City and Moises Padilla, he said.Tropical Cyclone Querubin and a shear line will cause moderate to heavy rain over Negros Island from Wednesday to Friday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said.The PDC deposits are the result of Kanlaon Volcano’s ...

A tricycle passenger was shot dead by an unidentified suspect at the Palanca-Burgos Road in Brgy. 12, Bacolod City, 4 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16.Killed that Joedan Rafols, 31, a resident of Purok Boulevard, Brgy. 13, Bacolod, the police said.The victim was riding in a tricycle when the suspect on a motorcycle shot him, the police added.The victim was brought to a hospital but was declared dead on arrival.The victim was working as a caretaker of a BREDCO property.The police are checking CCTV footage around the area to establish the identity of the gunman.*

The black-headed gulls spotted in Daga, Cadiz City.*Joseph Caceres/Cadiz ENRO photoCadiz in Negros Occidental has new rare “visitors", which proves that the city has a clean and healthy environment, it’s mayor said on Tuesday, Dec. 17.The new visitors are the black-headed gulls (Chroicocephalus ridibundus), which are rare migratory birds, Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante said.The black-headed gulls are from Europe or Asia, and usually also thrive in Canada.Thousands have been spotted in Barangay Daga, one of the coastal villages of Cadiz City, this month, Escalante said.The “black-headed gulls' sightings in Daga mean ecological richness of our mudflats, showcasing the village importance as a haven for migratory birds along critical flyways," Escalante said.It's also ...