BATANGBALER

Still no electricity here in Baler and the rest of the province. The sun is up and the sky is clear. The picture above is the only sign of damage I saw here in Baler, a fallen ipil-ipil tree in front of our building in ASCOT. Otherwise, everything is okay here. In the Dicadi area (northern Aurora about 200 kilometers from Baler), the story is different.

from inq7.net:‘Paeng’ weakens, exits RP:

Aurora took the brunt of the typhoon. Floods rose waist-deep as of 4 a.m. yesterday in the towns of Dilasag, Casiguran and Dinalungan.

A province-wide blackout began at 11 p.m. on Sunday. Electricity had not been restored as of 3 p.m. yesterday.

More than 300 families in Casiguran and 65 others from Dinalungan evacuated to the town centers to escape rising floodwaters. They began returning to their villages before lunch time.

Ramon Aquino, public works regional director, said Paeng’s winds blew the roofs off seven school buildings, a health center and barangay hall in Pangitahan, also in Dilasag.

The Baler-Casiguran and Baler-Bongabon roads in Aurora were not passable due to landslides, Aquino said. The only access route to Aurora was the Pantabangan-Canili Road via Nueva Ecija province.

A 28-year-old mother and her 6-year-old daughter drowned on Sunday night after strong waves whipped by Paeng’s winds washed away their hut on the coast of Dilasag town in northern Aurora. They were identified as Jocelyn and Iza Viares of Barangay Dimaseset in Dilasag.

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Photo taken here.

from ecogov project: One-stop-shop approach makes it easy for fisherfolk to register

Dinalungan is one of four municipalities in Aurora being assisted in coastal resource management by the Philippine Environmental Governance (EcoGov) Project, funded by USAID and implemented with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and other partners. The others are Dipaculao, Baler and San Luis.

Dinalungan has a population of 9,711 (Year 2000), half of whom are dependent on the sea for livelihood. EcoGov is assisting this LGU to protect and manage its municipal waters which is part of Baler Bay and home to rare marine species, such as dugong (sea cow), butanding (whale shark) and sea turtles. The declining fish catch and the slowly vanishing rare marine species alarmed Dinalungan officials and residents, making them decide to seek EcoGov assistance and go into high gear to manage their marine resources.

Read the complete story 

from The Philippine Star by Manny Galvez:

Embattled Mayor Marilyn Marquez has vowed to hold on to her post until the lapse of her 60-day preventive suspension later this month.

Superintendent Teodoro Saclolo, provincial police director, said the feisty Marquez, in explaining her refusal to vacate the municipal hall, gave assurances that she was willing to face the consequences of her action, including a possible additional six-month suspension.

Marquez made the statement during a meeting here with Saclolo, lawyer Rolando Calabarzon and lawyer Ofelio Tactac, assistant regional director and legal officer, respectively of the Department of the Interior and Local Governments (DILG) when they paid her a visit to inform her of the legal consequences of her refusal to vacate the town hall.

not so permanent link to the news

previous news from inq7.net : Aurora Mayor Defies suspension Order

Note: This is not an original Batangbaler article. I’m just providing a hyperlinlink to the news from The Philippine Star website. Batangbaler has no comments regarding this issue. Just want to clear things up because someone asked me to “go easy” on Mayor Marquez. I don’t need to go hard or easy on Mayor Marquez. I just don’t.

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from inq7.net: Aurora Mayor Defies Suspension Order

For almost a month now, Mayor Marilyn Marquez of Dinalungan, Aurora, has continued to defy a 60-day preventive suspension over a road user’s fee ordinance.

She remained camped inside her office for what she called a fight for the rule of law and environment.

Read the complete news

from Philippine Star (by Manny Galvez)

Tension reigns in this sleepy town as its mayor and vice mayor continue to defy the suspension order which Gov. Bellaflor Angara-Castillo slapped on them late last month on charges of gross misconduct and grave abuse of authority.

Additional policemen have been deployed here to prevent confrontation between the followers of embattled Mayor Marilyn Marquez and Vice Mayor Virgie Callejo and the supporters of acting Mayor Harvey Tubera.

Superintendent Teodoro Saclolo, provincial police director, sent 60 policemen last week to secure the municipal compound to avert violence between the camps of Marquez and Vallejo, who are still occupying their respective offices, and Tubera, who holds office at the session hall.

Read the complete news 

Both Aurorans and Agta Ako posted about the suspension of Dinalungan Mayor Marilyn Marquez and Vice Mayor Virgie Vallejo as reported on Manila Bulletin. Agta Ako urges us to read between the lines and connect the dots.

Aurorans also posted about the Baler Tsunami drill and the inq7.net report about it.

I was looking at these Google Earth images of Aurora and one thing came to my mind - “We’re F****d!”.

Dinalungan (click on picture to view larger image)

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from Tempo Online: Fragile Aurora mountain to collapse anytime – DPWH. “Disturbed by dynamite blasting during road construction two decades ago, the once impregnable solid rock formation of a kilometer-long segment of the Sierra Madre mountain in Dipaculao town will collapse anytime thus posing eminent danger to northern Aurora travellers, engineer Medel Chua, chief of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) here, revealed yesterday.”

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from journal.com.ph: P1-B furniture village eyed in Aurora. “A wood manufacturing firm is eyeing the establishment of a P1-billion furniture village in the province.

The Industries Development Corp. seeks to build the furniture village in the tri-boundaries of the DICADI (Dilasag, Casiguran, Dinalungan) area which could generate 6,700 jobs.

Michael Ong, vice president of IDC, said that based on preliminary studies, the project could generate investments of P1.1 billion. The IDC, he said, will provide the raw materials for manufacturing doors, furniture, molding, LVL, plywood, venner, wooden toys and accessories.

He said the project, once fully operational, could generate P3.1 billion revenue per year.”

Read the complete news.

My comment: This could also generate more floodings and possibly deaths in the area. What’s your take on this?

from The Journal Online: Aurora Mayor Suspended. “The Sandiganbayan suspended for 90 days Dinalungan Mayor Marilyn Marquez for alleged graft in connection with the awarding of bangus fry concession to an unregistered cooperative.

Councilors Pedro Sambas and FelixAcosta filed the charges against Marquez in 2000 which was elevated to the Sandiganbayan on Oct. 4, 2005. The aldermen said Marquez violated the SB resolution which awarded the bangus fry concession to Nipoo Irrigators Association. The concession was awarded to a cooperative which was not registered in Dinalungan.”

Read the complete news.

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Note: News by Mamer Bañez, a Baler-based reporter.

from Manila Bulletin Online: Aurora towns swamped by floods as deep as 10 ft: “Low-lying villages in Baler, Ma. Aurora, Dingalan and three northern towns of Dinalungan, Dilasag and Casiguran were swamped with floodwaters, which buried communities under 10 feet of water.”

from journal.com.ph: 3 die in Ecija, Aurora floods: “AT least three persons died while thousands of families remained encamped in different evacuations centers in Region 2, and 3 particularly in Nueva Ecija and Aurora provinces.”