News update Blackout strands MRT-LRT commuters

A blackout caused by Typhoon Basyang (international name: Conson) stranded several commuters in Metro Manila as the Light and Metro Rail Transit (LRT/MRT) systems were shut down Wednesday.
Brownout.(Brief Article): An article from: E
LRT Administration (LRTA) head Melquiades Robles admitted they have no advisory on when LRT services can resume for the day.

"Base sa latest update namin wala pang supply ng kuryente ang Meralco at di makabigay [ng] tiyak na oras [kung] anong oras ma-resume ang power (Based on our latest update, there is no power from the Manila Electric Co., and we cannot give any timetable on when power can be restored)," Robles said on dzBB radio at 5 a.m.

Even if power were restored, he said they will have to check the LRT lines for debris such as galvanized iron sheets.

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Meralco earlier said they have no timetable on what time they can restore power to Metro Manila. Power was cut off at 12:42 a.m. Wednesday.

"It will take a metrowide brownout to shut us down. In this case metrowide brownout dahil di nag-operate ang substation namin (It will take a metrowide brownout to shut us down. In this case it appears to be metrowide because our substations are all down)," Robles said.

Radio dzBB's Denver Trinidad reported several passengers were stranded at the LRT Pasay Rotonda and EDSA stations.

Making matters worse for commuters was that there were few public utility vehicles such as buses on the road as of 5 a.m.

Meanwhile, in Makati, zero visibility caused a seven-vehicle smashup along Epifanio delos Santos Avenue before dawn Wednesday.

A report by radio dzBB's Denver Trinidad said no one was initially reported hurt in the incident, but left the occupants of the vehicles traumatized.

The vehicles involved included three trailer trucks, a taxi, an L-300 van, and a red sedan.

In Sucat, Paranaque City, workers sought to clear the road of a girder launcher that collapsed.

Floods

The National Disaster Coordinating Council reported floods in parts of Quezon City and Manila as of 1 a.m.

It said floods were gutter-deep in Tandang Sora and Sangandaan; knee-deep in Delpan-Recto in Manila and Bambang-Abad Santos Avenue; and gutter-deep in P. Guevarra, Lacson Avenue, Espana, and Pureza.
Brown-out;: The power crisis in America
40 flights canceled

Meanwhile, 40 domestic and international flights of Philippine Airlines were canceled.
Brown-out & slow-down
Acting PAL spokesman Jonathan Gesmundo said the flights were divert to other airports.

He said the affected flights include those going to Davao, Cebu, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo, Tagbilaran, Tacloban, Dumaguete, Zamboanga, Legazpi, General Santos and Puerto Princesa, and Hong Kong. — RSJ

Just ask any gold jewelry-making trade in Philippine ?

Hi May in the Philippine jewelry-making trade has been in existence since the early 16th century. Historical records indicate that jewelry-making dates back to the late Stone Age as evidenced by bracelets, pendants and beads from that era. It is believed that skill in making jewelry has been acquired the early Filipinos from their Asian neighbors like the Chinese. Traditionally, jewelry-making is a home based industry intended to be a source of livelihood for the family. It has become an industry worthy of government attention and support. Given proper support, the industry can contribute to national economic development by increasing the sector's export receipts and maximizing the country's position as a top producer of gold. Precious metal jewelry made of gold is the major product of the Philippines. Silver jewelry comprise a smaller portion of the business but is steadily increasing.

Pearls, precious stones and semi-precious stones are unworked or worked pearls, cut and polished diamonds and colored gemstones such as emerald, rubies and sapphires in loose form. They vary according to size, color, cut, clarity and luster as in the case of pearls. Precious stones are defined as diamonds, emerald, rubies and sapphires with some addition of pearls. All other gems are considered as semi-precious.

Notwithstanding the availability of raw materials and the capability of local manufacturers to meet local demand, imported jewelry items still abound in the local market. Usually, these jewelry items are made of gold coming from Italy, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong.

No official statistics as to the size of the domestic market for jewelry exist. There is also no reliable data on how much of the locally-available jewelry are made domestically or originated from foreign sources. In 1994, De Beers places the Philippine diamond jewelry market at US $62 million. If it is safely assumed that 50% of all jewelry are made with diamonds while the other half are gold and silver set with other stones, then the market size is estimated to be around US$120 million. This can be higher considering that diamond jewelry accounts for only 20-30% of the total jewelry market In this case, the market size for jewelry in the Philippines could be as high as US$ 200 million.

Although, officially stated there are six areas in the country where majority of jewelry manufacturing firms are located and these are Benguet, Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao, the Caraga Region, and Bulacan. The jewelry industry in the Philippines is a fragmented one composed of cottage-type small firms with little investments in new technology like modern tools and equipment. In fact near Isabela Gamu a jewelery maker show me some of the local made handicrafts jewelry, gold from the tribe Ichananaw are among the tribes living in the mountains of Tinglayan, Kalinga he had been building up his own network of clients dealing in the underground jewelery trade. Finally, at the end of the day, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and that added value for the piece of the jewelery .

News Update Bodies of three missing crewmembers in Pampanga plane crash found

Three bodies of missing crew members of a Russian-made cargo plane that crashed in Pampanga Wednesday night were finally recovered Thursday, police authorities said.

Bodies of Russian ground engineers Mikolay Bannon and Vadim Yakimov and Bulgarian crew member Tzvitoslav Guetchevski were found but were already "beyond recognition," local police in Mexico City, Pampanga said.

The charred bodies had already been brought to a funeral home in town, the police report added.

The Antonov 12 aircraft, owned by Inter Island Caro, was bound for Clark Field in Pampanga from Mactan Island in Cebu when the crash occurred around 9:10 p.m.

Initial investigation showed that the cargo plane (with tail number UP-AN216) encountered a short circuit at about 8:50 p.m., triggering a fire inside the aircraft. Clark's tower lost communication with the plane after that.

Russian pilot Yuriv Tochonyy was forced to make an emergency landing in Barangay Laput in Mexico City, but it crashed about 22 miles (35 kilometers) south of Clark airport, the former US Air Base near Manila.

Besides the pilot, his co-pilot Dmitriy Struminskiy, a 39-year-old Uzbek, and Bokhadir Ruziev, 44, also an Uzbek, survived the incident with injuries.

Aircraft investigators from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines have already retrieved the plane's black box and voice recorder.

However, investigators could not immediately examine the voice recordings in the black box because they were in Russian.

No residents were hurt in the incident as the cargo plane crashed in an open field away from residential areas. - Mark Merueñas/LBG, RJAB J
Civil Aviation Authority: A report on the supplying by the Authority of navigation and air traffic control 
services to civil aircraft (Cmnd)
Cvil Aircraft Airworthiness Information and Procedures (CAP)
Future Airport Development in South Wales and the South West of England (CAP380)

Philippines Visa

Hi jack for your information on visas. Most foreign visitors do not need visas for stays of less than 21 days. Three-month visas can be obtained in advance and cost around USD 35. For more detailed information on visa requirements, please visit the Republic of the Philippines
Web site.Visa Requirements from the Republic of the Philippines or you follow this link to show you how to getting an extension on your Philippine visa can be done quickly and efficiently at the Bureau of Immigration in Mandaue city just outside of Cebu.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Abuwuo5UDmw