Big quake jolts Davao, Sarangani, other areas; death toll climbs to 11

DAVAO CITY - The death toll following the magnitude 6.8 earthquake that hit Davao Occidental and nearby areas has climbed to 11, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

In a report, the NDRRMC said eight of the reported fatalities, which are still for validation, were from Soccsksargen while one was from Davao.

It said 15 individuals -- 11 from Soccsksargen and four from Davao region -- were injured.

The disaster bureau said a total of 2,489 families of 12,885 persons were affected by the earthquake, which hit the waters off south of Sarangani in Davao Occidental.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has provided a total of P11,612,558.07 million worth of assistance to the affected population.

The NDRRMC said several road sections in Tboli and Tampakan South Cotabato were not passible due to the damage brought about by the earthquake.

It also reported that the number of houses totally wrecked due to the jolt increased to 97 while 729 were damaged.

A total of 118 infrastructures also incurred damage due to the earthquake, including school and government buildings and facilities.

Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) Director Teresito Bacolcol reiterated his call for the public to always be prepared for strong earthquakes, as these “will be experienced from time to time.”

His pronouncement came following the magnitude 6.8 quake off the coast of Davao Occidental last November 17, which has generated 113 aftershocks with magnitudes ranging from 1.4 to 4.9 as of 1 p.m. Tuesday.

“We are part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, and whether we like it or not, we will experience strong earthquakes from time to time, so we really have to prepare,” Bacolcol said at the Bagong Pilipinas public briefing.

The movement of the Cotabato Trench has caused the earthquake, Bacolcol said, adding that aftershocks could continue for several days or weeks, with magnitudes and frequencies decreasing.

The strongest earthquake along the Cotabato Trench was the magnitude 8.1 tremor that happened on August 17, 1976, and which produced a tsunami as high as nine meters, according to the Phivolcs chief.

He noted that the tsunami waves arrived within two to five minutes after the main shock, thus the people were unable to prepare, and resulted to around 8,000 casualties.

Bacolcol also pointed out the need to make structures resilient.

“Ang lindol naman po ay hindi nakakamatay (earthquakes don’t claim lives). It is the collapse of man-made structures that may claim lives,” he stressed. “When you build a house, we should follow the minimum engineering standards and if necessary, it should be retrofitted to make it earthquake-resilient.”

The Phivolcs chief added that there are engineering techniques to lessen the impact of liquefaction hazards, such as soil compaction, ground piling, and deep footings, among others.

Massive floods hit Northern Samar, now under state of calamity

TACLOBAN CITY – The provincial government has placed Nothern Samar under a state of calamity following the recommendation of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) members.

Members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in a hybrid special session passed and approved the recommendation of the PDRRMC after 18 towns were reportedly inundated.

The resolution states that “70 percent of the province population equivalent to 74,500 families or 370,000 individuals from 24 towns of the province was affected by the calamity.”

The resolution did not include the estimate of damage and lists of towns affected by the massive flooding.

(From page 1) vocacies and even legislation to combat anti-Asian racism, about a third of the AAPI community say they experienced an act of abuse based on their race or ethnicity. This includes being on the receiving end of verbal harassment, slurs, physical threats, and cyberbullying, among others.

The new poll from AAPI Data and The Associated PressNORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 15 percent of the AAPI community, which includes Filipinos and FilAms, say they have been victims of some form of hate crime.

Slightly more than half believe racism is an “extremely” or a “very serious” problem in the US.

The PBS News Hour report featured 29-year-old Jennifer Lee, a FilAm from San Diego. She recalled being discriminated against and being called racial slurs.

In a recent interview for a job at a tutoring service, she was twice insulted. First, she was assumed to be Japanese. Almost all Asians know that Lee is a Chinese name, and not Japanese, although it is also common for Filipinos and FilAms.

Secondly, she was told that, “You people are always so obedient. Why? That’s so pathetic.”

Stephanie Chan, director of advocacy group Stop AAPI Hate, says that they are aware that Asian Americans “are among the most likely not to report the crime that they’ve experienced.”

She added: “It’s really sobering to see that even when the world seems to have returned to normal, after the pandemic, these levels are still really elevated in terms of anti-Asian American hate.”

Many in the AAPI community are pessimistic about antiAsian racism easing in the near future. Roughly half believe that they are likely to be victims of discrimination because of their ethnicity within the next five years, while about two in

Almost P50 M smuggled vegetables seized in Subic Freeport

With the declaration of state of calamity, the provincial government may now mobilize its resources and implement measures to address the impact of flooding and provide immediate assistance to affected communities.

On the information from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DWSD) among the flood-affected towns in the province are the capital of Northern Samar which is Catarman, Catubig, Gamay, Lapinig, Las Navas, Lope de Vega, Mapanas, Mondragon, Pambujan, Rosario, San Roque, Victoria, and Lavezares.

A report from the Philippine National Police based on monitoring of their municipal police stations, included in five believe it’s somewhat likely that they will be targets of hate crime based on their race within the same period.

Of those who have already fallen victim to some form of hate crime, one in five believe it’s “very” or “extremely likely” to happen again within the same time frame.

Chan said she hopes the poll will lessen people’s ignorance surrounding anti-Asian discrimination, adding that she further hopes people will understand it’s more than just hate crimes which tend to get the most media coverage.

She said, “People’s daily lives are impacted by things like verbal harassment or bullying in schools or online acts of hate or civil rights violations. Like not even being allowed to dine at a restaurant or stay at a hotel or being rejected for an Uber ride.”

“Pay attention to these,” said Chan, “These are the experiences that we’re having in America today.”

This resource is supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to https://www.cavshate.org/.

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – In line with the mandate of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to run after agricultural smugglers, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Subic apprehended nine 40-foot container trucks at the Port of Subic on Wednesday.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan, who personally went to the Freeport’s container terminal for the inspection, said the nine containers were all declared as frozen lobster balls, which were consigned to Rianne Food Products.

The SBMA Chief added that the seized cargo arrived on November 3 with a declaration that the shipments all contained at least 40,000 cartons of frozen lobster balls. Tan revealed that upon cargo check, the SBMA and the BOC found that the shipments contained fresh potatoes, carrots, radish, and broccoli in the amount of millions of pesos. The BOC Port of Subic seized the misdeclared shipments for proper disposition and appropriate action.

Meanwhile, Chairman Tan lauded the vigilance of the two agencies, stating that both the SBMA and the BOC Port of Subic are very much serious in implementing the President’s mandate to go after agricultural smugglers and end il-

Batangas eyed as PHL’s next major logistics hub - Mandanas

BATANGAS CITY – The provincial government is leveraging Batangas’ geographical advantages and the growing interest of corporate locators in its economic zones to launch this province as a major logistics hub in the country, next to the highly congested Port of Manila and those at Subic-Clark and Cebu.

Governor Hermilando Mandanas said his administration is emboldened by the province’s long and shipping-friendly coastline, coupled with its location at the center of the fastgrowing Calabarzon region, in addition to its relative proximity to the bustling and populous National Capital Region (NCR).

“The next logical step is to turn Batangas into a logistics hub. The Port of Batangas is already here in this city. There is a huge opportunity to grow the economy for the benefit of Batangueños and Filipinos in general,” he told News and Information Bureau Director Luis Morente and Philippine News Agency staffers during a meeting at the capitol.

A logistics hub is described as a centralized geographical location that brings together key business operators in logistics, such as manufacturers, shipping lines, air cargo companies, as well as third and fourth-party logistics providers, and logistics support services.

It is where raw materials and unfinished goods are stored, processed, finalized and managed before delivery to final consumers.