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Official Publication of the Philippine Information Agency Bicol Regional Office, in cooperation with the RIAC-REDIRAS - RDC Bicol



Sunday, August 19, 2012


Family, colleagues remain hopeful Robredo, pilots will be found alive
…additional choppers, ships, divers deployed

By MALoterte, EADelgado

LEGAZPI CITY, August 19 (PIA) -- Besides the strong current and deep waters of Masbate Pass, time poses a big challenge to the search and rescue teams, which for more than 24 hours now, have been relentlessly scouring the crash site and surrounding areas to find Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and two others.

President Aquino refuses to give up and continues to stay put in the operation center overseeing the search and rescue operation until this evening optimistic that Robredo and the two pilots will be found alive.

Family, relatives, friends, colleagues and supporters of Robredo meanwhile offered simultaneous masses at the churches of San Francisco, Immaculate Conception, and Metropolitan Cathedral praying for and imploring Ina’s intercession for the safe return of Robredo and his companions.

Supporters continue to pour in Robredo’s residence to show support and anticipating positive developments for the ongoing search and rescue operations in Masbate waters.

Transportation and Communication Secretary Mar Roxas meanwhile bared that divers recovered mid-afternoon the flight plan more than 100 feet underwater indicating that the search and rescue mission is right on the vicinity of the crash site and the remnants of the ill-fated plane are close by.

The discovery of the flight manifest followed after rescuers also recovered parts of the plane's right wing with the aircraft designation plate RPC 4431.

Divers have also been deployed to investigate some trace signals of metal objects on the sea floor of undetermined origin indicated by sonar less than a kilometer off Masbate island.

Around 200 people from the United States Navy, Philippine Navy and Air Force, Philippine Coast Guard, and Philippine National Police, Philippine Red Cross, scube-ers, alongside local fishing fishermen, are conducting the surface and underwater search.

Naval Forces of Southern Luzon (Navforsol) based on this city has stated that Philippine Navy’s helicopter PNH 422 from Sangley Point, Cavite City already arrived 5:05 p.m. in Masbate to augment aerial search and rescue efforts.

The Navy, according to Navforsol, will also deploy two of its logistic support vessel to sustain search and rescue operations namely LC 550 and BU 825.

In Albay, Gov. Joey Salceda said all 4 p.m. Sunday masses today in all parishes in Albay province were dedicated for the safety of Robredo and his two other companions - pilot Jessup Bahinting and co-pilot Kshitiz Chand - for the comfort of their families, fortitude of rescuers and peace of the entire nation-in-anguish in this period of uncertainty.

"I ask every Albayano to pray for that miracle for Jesse Robredo and to storm the gates of heaven so every angel would descend to protect him," Salceda furthered. (MAL/EAD-PIA5) 

PNoy leads search and rescue for Robredo, 2 others

By MALoterte, LSMacatangay and EADelgado

LEGAZPI CITY, August 19 (PIA) -- President Aquino is in Masbate overseeing the search and rescue operations for Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and two others whose plane crashed off Masbate waters Saturday afternoon.

Following earlier briefing from Masbate police provincial director Heriberto Olitoquit on the status of the operations, the President conferred with local officials and search and rescue teams on updates and to review strategies to recover Robredo and the two pilots of the ill-fated Piper Seneca five-seater plane.

Rescue units and divers from different response teams of the military, police, coast guard, volunteer groups, including local fishermen skilled in deep-sea diving, are relentlessly scouring at least five square kilometers of the crash site in Masbate Pass bent on recovering Robredo and company.

Secretary Mar Roxas of the Department of Transportation and Communication, who is also at the command center with the President, disclosed that a sonar equipment is now being used to detect deep underwater metal object in the crash site.

The President Aquino was earlier in the hospital to visit the crash survivor, Police Senior Inspector June Abrasado, Robredo’s aide-de-camp who was plucked from the sea minutes after the incident by fishermen who witnessed the plane crash.

The plane, on the accounts of eye witnesses, plowed into the sea minutes after take off. The plane seemed to make an emergency landing at the Masbate airport.

Cawayan Mayor Edgar Condor said in an interview that the motor of the plane sounded like the rotor of a helicopter and once on take off, appeared to go down instead of up.

Last night, diver-rescuers temporarily withdrew around 11:35 p.m. the night time search underwater from the crash site due to darkness, and strong current, however, a number of boats from the navy, coast guard and fishermen continued to comb the surface overnight.

Also yesterday, fishermen who were first in the crash site helping out in the operations recovered a crumpled portion of the plane the size of a writing desk with the numbers "431" indicating the ill-fated plane broke on impact.

The operations proceeded as early as 4 a.m. today augmented with more rescue units, divers, ships and choppers, including a US Cherokee helicopter that arrived around 9 a.m. to help out in the search and rescue operations.

With President Aquino staying put at the command post, search and rescue operations will continue to find the missing DILG secretary and the two pilots.

Meanwhile in Naga City, masses are being offered by family, relatives, government officials, acquaintances, constituents in the churches of San Francisco, Immaculate Conception, and Metropolitan Cathedral praying for the safety of the secretary and his companions.

Supporters continue to pour in Robredo’s residence to show support and anticipating positive developments for the ongoing search and rescue operations in Masbate waters. (MAL/EAD/LSM-PIA5)


Robredo’s family awaits rescue result

By Analiza S. Macatangay

NAGA CITY, August 19 (PIA) -- Atty. Leni Robredo, wife of DILG Secretary Jesse M. Robredo, continues to draw strength from family, friends and supporters, as she awaits for any update at their residence at Bulusan Street, Barangay Dayangdang here on the ongoing search and rescue off Masbate coast.

Comforted that President Aquino is personally leading the on-going search in Masbate since early this morning, Mrs. Robredo, together with her three daughters- Aika, Trisha, and Jillian continue to ask everyone to join them in prayers for the safe return of Sec. Robredo.

Earlier, masses were simultaneously offered at the churches of San Francisco, Immaculate Conception and Metropolitan Cathedral for the safety of Robredo and the two pilots after almost 20 hours since the Piper Seneca sank in Masbate waters yesterday afternoon.

DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman, who was at Robredo’s residence this morning, was beside Atty. Leni, consoling her and her family in this distressful moment of waiting and anticipation.

A vigil is continuously being held in front of the image of Our Lady of Penafrancia situated in front of Robredo’s house. (MAL/LSM-PIA5- Camarines Sur) 

All systems go for the 1st PTCCCA, stakeholders affirm support and participation

LEGAZPI CITY, August 19 (PIA) – In less than a week from today, the First Philippine Tourism Conference on Climate Change Adaptation (PTCCCA) will open at The Oriental Hotel Legazpi. On-line registration of participants continues to pour in from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. 

So far, five of the premier hotels in Legazpi City are almost fully booked but organizers assured that there are enough hotels to accommodate the more or less one thousand expected delegates.

President Benigno S. Aquino III is invited to keynote this historic conference to find solutions to the disastrous effects of extreme weather events like the recent floods that hit Metro Manila and its environs.

The participants expressed anticipation on what the President’s pronouncements will be considering the brunt of “Hagupit ng Habagat” that caused so much hopelessness to the victims.

Besides the President, other key officials of the government are expected to grace the PTCCCA such as Vice President Jejomar Binay; Senator Loren Legarda, the UN Asia-Pacific Senior Champion on CCA and DRR; Secretaries Jesse Robredo of DILG, Ramon Paje of DENR, Lucille Sering and Heherson Alvarez of CCC, Elisea Gozun of PACC, and Nereus Acosta of PAEP, among others.

Senator Legarda, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Climate Change hopes to include the result of the PTCCCA deliberations in the framework plans to address the massive flooding in Metro Manila and the CAMANAVA area following the revelation of Dr. Fernando Siringan, an expert of the UP Marine Science Institute that Metro Manila has started to “sink” and why there is massive flooding even in the absence of a typhoon.    

On the local scene, Mayor Geraldine Rosal of this city, Tourism Regional Director Maria “Nini” Ravanilla and LCCAD, Inc. President and PTCCCA Conference Director Nong Rangasa are the prime movers in this national conference.

Rosal said “the PTCCCA, which coincides with the Street Carnival of the annual Ibalong Festival, will boost investment ventures in the city in as much as the twin events will be highlighted by the inauguration of the Boulevard de Legazpi, a new road opening going to the South Luzon International Airport.”

While the major partners are all agog in the preparation of this significant event, local executives, development and planning officials, tourism officers, and other major stakeholders who have signified their attendance to the PTCCCA have already reached the maximum number of expected participants still more are placing reservations and hotel accommodations.  

Even as the countdown begins today, some national legislators other than the six Bicolano representatives have also manifested their interest in joining the event, not to mention the local officials in Bicol who were mandated by an Memorandum Circular (MC) from the DILG to attend the conference as well as officials of government owned or controlled corporations who were also mandated by an MC from the Civil Service Commission.

LCCAD president and PTCCCA conference director, Nong Rangasa disclosed that flood-ravaged areas like Pampanga, Bataan, Alaminos and Nueva Vizcaya are sending more participants than the expected number. (MAL/LCCAD-PIA5)

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