Author: user user

At least 7,777 families or 21,945 people were evacuated in the Bicol provinces of Albay, Masbate and Catanduanes on Saturday, October 18, amid heavy rains and strong winds spawned by Tropical Storm Ramil, which made landfall over Gubat, Sorsogon on Saturday afternoon.

In its 5 p.m. bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said ‘Ramil’ – which packed a maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 90 kph, was projected to make another landfall in Aurora province by Sunday morning.

Gremil Alexis Naz, spokesperson of Office of Civil Defense Bicol said 4,782 families or 12,677 people were evacuated in the towns of Daraga, Guinobatan, Jovellar, Libon, Malilipot and Pio Duran in Albay province.

In Baras town in Catanduanes, 2,957 families or 9,135 people were evacuated, while 38 families or 133 people were moved to safer grounds inUson town in Masbate. As of noon Saturday, 3,142 passengers were stranded in the various ports in the region after the Philippine Coast Guard ordered the suspension of sea travel.

About 1,004 rolling cargoes, six vessels, and two motorized banca were also stranded. Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal (TCWS) No. 2 was hoisted in northern portion of Aurora (Casiguran, Dilasag, Dinalungan), Polillo Islands, Camarines Norte, Catanduanes, the northern portion of Camarines Sur (Tinambac, Siruma, Goa, San Jose, Lagonoy, Garchitorena, Caramoan, (Presentacion), the extreme eastern portion of Albay (Rapu-Rapu), and the northeastern portion of Sorsogon (Prieto Diaz); and in the northeastern portion of Northern Samar (Laoang, Palapag, Mapanas, Pambujan, San Roque, Mondragon, Gamay) in Eastern Visayas.

Under TCWS No. 1 in Luzon were Cagayan including Babuyan Islands, Isabela, Quirino, Nueva Vizcaya, Apayao, Abra, Kalinga, Mountain Province, Ifugao, Benguet, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, the rest of Aurora, Nueva Ecija, the eastern portion of Bulacan (Doña Remedios Trinidad, Norzagaray, San Miguel, San Ildefonso, San Rafael, Angat), the eastern portion of Tarlac (Camiling, San Clemente, Santa Ignacia, Paniqui, Moncada, San Manuel, Anao, Ramos, Pura, Victoria, City of Tarlac, La Paz, Concepcion, Gerona), the eastern portion of Pampanga (Magalang, Arayat, Candaba), the northern and eastern portions of Quezon (Tagkawayan, Perez, Alabat, Quezon, Atimonan, Padre Burgos, Unisan, Gumaca, Plaridel, Agdangan, Pagbilao, Mauban, Calauag, Guinayangan, Lopez, Pitogo, Macalelon, General Luna, Catanauan, San Narciso, Buenavista, San Francisco, San Andres, Mulanay, General Nakar, Infanta, Real, Sampaloc), the rest of Camarines Sur, the rest of Albay, the rest of Sorsogon, Burias Island, and Ticao Island

Those in the Visayas were the rest of Northern Samar, the northern portion of Eastern Samar (San Policarpo, Arteche, Oras, Dolores, Maslog, Jipapad, Taft, Can-Avid), and the northern portion of Samar (Matuguinao, San Jose de Buan, Calbayog City, Gandara, Santa Margarita, Pagsanghan, San Jorge, Tagapul-An8

Emma Tiglao moved one step closer to the Miss Grand International 2025 crown after clinching a spot in the Top 10 of the competition held in Bangkok, Thailand on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Joining Tiglao in the Top 10 are the delegates from Colombia, Czech Republic, Mexico, Venezuela, Guatemala, Thailand, Tanzania, Ghana, and Spain.

The announcement came after the swimsuit round, where contestants walked the runway in deep aqua blue swimsuits to the tune of Tate McRae’s ‘Just Keep Watching.’

Tiglao’s confident strut and radiant smile drew cheers from Filipino fans in the audience. Thailand bagged the Best Swimsuit award while Colombia was named Miss Popular.

Earlier in the evening, Tiglao was awarded the Country’s Power of the Year award after she topped the online poll of the category.

Reigning Filipino queen Christine Juliane ‘CJ’ Opiaza is set to pass on her crown by the end of the night.

Emma Tiglao of Philippines delivered a strong start as she entered the Top 22 of the Miss Grand International 2025 pageant held in Bangkok, Thailand on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Tiglao’s name was the first to be announced as winner of a special award, which automatically entitled her to a slot in the Top 22. She won the Country’s Power of the Year special award after she topped the online poll of the category.

The announcement came after the show’s high-energy opening segment, where all 77 delegates introduced themselves in sparkling gold ensembles.

Aside from the Philippines, other delegates who advanced to the Top 22 included representatives from Ghana, Japan, United Kingdom, Ghuatemala, Dominican Republic, Czech Republic, Martinique, Indonesia, France, Zambia, Paraguay, Laos, Brazil, Tanzania, Thailand, Mexico, Valenzuela, Belgium, Spain, USA, and Equador.

Given the promising performances of the delegates, the MGI announced that they are expanding the finalists into Top 22 instead of 20.

Brazil, India, and Thailand bagged the Best National Costume award, while Miss Ghana won the Grand Talent Award.

Tiglao is seeking to inherit the crown from reigning Filipino queen Christine Juliane ‘CJ’ Opiaza and become the second titleholder from the Philippines.

From 22 semifinalists, the finalists will be trimmed in half to proceed to the next round, which also include the delegate who will top the ‘Miss Popular’ paid poll online, where Tiglao ranked 10th in the last tally.

Paul Telfer of ‘Days of Our Lives’ and Nancy Lee Grahn of ‘General Hospital’ won lead acting honors at the Daytime Emmys on Friday, with ABC’s ‘General Hospital’ claiming six trophies in the major categories, including drama series.

Sir David Attenborough broke Dick Van Dyke’s record for oldest Daytime Emmy winner, taking the trophy for daytime personality, non-daily as host of Netflix’s ‘Secret Lives of Orangutans.’

Attenborough, who is 99, wasn’t on hand. The Brit’s career as a writer, host and narrator spans eight decades.

Van Dyke was 98 when he won as guest performer in a daytime drama series for ‘Days of Our Lives’ in 2024.

Telfer, a 45-year-old native of Scotland, plays Xander Kiriakis on Peacock’s ‘Days of Our Lives,’ which he first joined in 2015.

‘My mom always loved soaps and she loved villains,’ he said. ‘She’s been gone for over 20 years, and so to win this on a soap opera playing the villain is really amazing. Thanks, Mom.’

Grahn earned her third career trophy at the 52nd annual awards, having played Alexis Davis on ‘General Hospital’ since 1996. She regularly uses her platform to speak out on political matters, and she carried a silver clutch that she had hand-lettered with the words ‘Democracy dies in silence.’

‘Our democracy is worth fighting for, the people in it are worth caring about, and whether you have a platform or not, now is the time, guys, to show up, stand up, speak up for human decency, for democracy,’ she said, shouting, ‘Stand up!’ multiple times to the audience. Jonathan Jackson of ‘General Hospital’ and first-time nominee Susan Walters of ‘The Young and the Restless’ won supporting acting honors.

Jackson accepted the trophy for playing Lucky Spencer, a role he originated in 1993 and has played on and off ever since.

‘General Hospital’ also claimed trophies for Alley Mills as guest performer in a daytime drama and its writing and directing teams.

It was Mills’ second career win for playing Heather Webber. The 74-year-old, who first won in 2023, is best known as the mom on ‘The Wonder Years.’

‘We’re living in really dark times right now. Everything’s crazy,’ Mills told the audience at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. ‘We just got to keep our spirits high.’

Walters plays Diane Jenkins on CBS’ ‘YandR,’ which she has appeared in during three different stints.

‘I’m so happy that I won so I can thank my husband of 40 years,’ she said, singling out Linden Ashby, who has appeared on the same show and lost to Mills in the guest actor category.

Drew Barrymore claimed her first win as daytime talk series host for her eponymous New York-based show. She beat out Kelly Clarkson, Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa, Jenna Bush Hager and Hoda Kotb, and Jennifer Hudson. ‘Live With Kelly and Mark’ won daytime talk series.

Lisa Yamada of CBS’ ‘The Bold and the Beautiful’ won the emerging talent category, which replaced the younger actor and actress awards. The 23-year-old plays murderous Luna Nozawa.

‘Acting has been my dream since I gained consciousness, and my dreams are coming true right now,’ Yamada said, her voice choked with emotion. ‘I’m ugly crying.’

The night’s most exuberant winner was Kardea Brown, honored as culinary host for the Food Network’s ‘Delicious Miss Brown,’ which has aired for 10 seasons. The show also won for culinary instructional series.

‘Is this real?’ Brown said, mascara-stained tears streaming down her face. ‘These are tears of joy. As a young Black woman from Charleston, South Carolina, nobody would have ever thought that this would be possible, but I know one person that did. That’s God.’

Lindsey Vander Weide scored five consecutive cross-court kills to lift Petro Gazz past winless but gritty Chery Tiggo, 25-15, 20-25, 25-23, 25-21, in the PVL Reinforced Conference on Saturday at Capital Arena in Ilagan City, Isabela.

After yielding to Creamline in four sets on Tuesday, the Angels continued to lean on the one-two punch of Vander Weide and Brooke Van Sickle, who scored 25 points each, while also making major adjustments with rookie Jules Tolentino running the plays and Myla Pablo playing as the starting opposite spiker. With the Crossovers threatening to force a decider with a 21-19 lead in the fourth set, Vander Weide caught fire, accounting for five in the Angels’ blistering 6-0 run to close the match in two hours and eight minutes.

‘I think the season is shorter than it was when I was here the first time. So, every game counts,’ said Vander Weide. ‘We’re only three games into season. But at the same time, that’s kind of a good portion in the season. So, I knew we couldn’t take another L on the road. And I think all of us kind of lit that fire underneath us.’

The returning American hitter, who led the team to a championship in 2022 as the Best Import and Finals MVP, had 19 kills, five aces, and a block to go with 11 excellent receptions.

Van Sickle, the reigning Season MVP, also had a tremendous floor defense with 20 digs and 15 excellent receptions to lead the Angels’ rise to a 2-1 record behind unbeaten Pool B leaders Akari and ZUS Coffee. Tolentino dished out 21 excellent sets, as Pablo and MJ Phillips had 10 points each after combining for seven of the team’s 13 kill blocks.

‘The whole team stepped up, came in, and contributed. So, overall, a great team win,’ said Petro Gazz coach Gary Van Sickle.

Petro Gazz, which rebounded after a four-set loss to rival Creamline on Tuesday, battles unbeaten Akari on Thursday at FilOil EcoOil Centre at 4 p.m. After splitting the first two sets, Petro Gazz squandered a 21-17 lead in the third, off two big blocks from MJ Phillips and Ranya Musa. But it committed three errors in Chery Tiggo’s four straight points to tie the frame.

Cess Robles and Yuni Batista kept the set tied at 23. But Van Sickle came to the rescue with a massive cross-court kill to reach set point, followed by a frame-clinching off-speed for the 2-1 match advantage.

Mylene Paat also had her moment in the fourth, drilling four straight points to gain a 19-16 advantage before Van Sickle and Vander Weide’s heroics for Petro Gazz.

Chery Tiggo remained winless in three games, as it continues to search for its first victory against Galeries Tower also on Thursday at 1:30 p.m.

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake jolted Surigao del Sur on Saturday evening.

According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the offshore quake struck 23 kilometers southeast of Cagwait town at 8:31 p.m., with a depth of 20 kilometers.

It was felt at Intensity 4 in Bislig City, Surigao del Sur, and Intensity 1 in Davao City.

Instrumental intensities were recorded as follows:

Intensity 3 in Cabadbaran City (Agusan del Norte), Digos City (Davao del Sur), Nabunturan (Davao de Oro), Bislig City and Tandag City (Surigao del Sur).

Phivolcs said recent quake is an aftershock of the Oct. 11 offshore quake also in Cagwait.

Damage is expected, according to Phivolcs.

‘Is she afraid of something being revealed in the ongoing investigation, thus she is trying to discredit the integrity of ICI (Independent Commission for Infrastructure)?’

Speaking in Filipino, Palace press officer Claire Castro has asked this as a response to Vice President Sara Duterte’s statement that she believes that the government formed ICI to ‘legitimize’ its narratives on corruption Duterte, in an interview in Manaoag, Pangasinan, earlier this Saturday, said she is wondering why the ICI conducts investigations on infrastructure anomalies in the first place.

‘The Office of the President has billions of confidential funds. The office can do case buildup using the resources of the Office of the President,’ she said.

Responding to this, Castro emphasized that the members of the ICI are all experts and have integrity, even mentioning that they are not political personalities.

‘Pity the people who are part of the government but do not help the government and the people. Pity the people who are supposed to be public servants who only speak speculations to discredit the government,’ Castro said. ‘What does the vice president know about presenting real evidence and not fake and fabricated ones? His concocted stories are worthless. They should not be understood anymore,’ she said.

The ICI was established through President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s signing of Executive Order No. 94 on September 11, 2025.

It is mandated to investigate anomalies in government flood control and related projects in the last 10 years.

Dom Escobar has been one of the few bright spots for Ateneo in the first round of the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament.

In the Blue Eagles’ failed comeback bid against the league-leading National University Bulldogs on Saturday, Escobar had another solid game that certainly didn’t go unnoticed. ‘We’re a team that likes to get multiple rebounding performers,’ Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin said. ‘We expect players to produce in their roles on both ends and Dom is one of those guys that early in the season wasn’t so much into that (rebounding role), but now he understands the importance of it.’

Escobar, the one-and-done guard, notched a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

And it’s not the first time Escobar delivered such numbers. In the Blue Eagles’ 98-89 triple overtime loss to University of Santo Tomas, Escobar finished with 13 points and a game-high 20 rebounds in a game that also featured burly big men in UST’s Collins Akowe and Ateneo’s Divine Adili.

Baldwin hopes to see that kind of effort from Escobar and more from the others in the second round.

‘He’s a great kid who responds well to challenges. He’s putting up some impressive numbers and we’ll be needing it from Shawn Tuano, (Andrew) Bongo, Joaqui Espina and our other wing players as well.’

The Blue Eagles have been struggling with three consecutive defeats after opening the season at 4-0.

Adamson turned to its defense to slow down streaking University of Santo Tomas, 69-59, at the end of their UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball first round campaigns on Saturday at Araneta Coliseum.

The Soaring Falcons, flaunting the league’s best defense, posted just their third win in four games and snapped the usually high-octane Growling Tigers’ three-game winning streak. ‘I’d like to say we just got lucky today because they’re playing their third game in seven days. We felt that last time,’ Adamson coach Nash Racela said, referring to UST, which was coming off a triple overtime win over Ateneo last Saturday and another victory over FEU just three days ago.

‘We felt a little bit tired, but we still took advantage of UST,’ added Racela, whose squad allows a league-best 63 points per game.

The Falcons took a 13-point lead but needed to hold off the Tigers’ rally in the fourth after Kyla Paranada cut the deficit to just five early in the final frame. Gelo Crisostomo then pulled UST back again to within six, 65-59, with still 1:45 to go. Crisostomo’s triple, however, was the Tigers’ last basket as the Falcons forced them to miss their last three attempts from the field.

AJ Fransman led the Falcons with 18 points while Cedrick Manzano recorded 12 points and eight rebounds.

Nic Cabañero topscored with 23 points while Collins Akowe registered 10 points and 16 rebounds for UST, which remained in second place with a 5-2 card.

Emma Tiglao is one step away from back-to-back glory for the Philippines after she advanced to the Top 5 of the Miss Grand International 2025 pageant held in Bangkok, Thailand on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Joining Tiglao in the Top 5 are the candidates from Ghana, Venezuela, Thailand, and Spain.

Before the announcement, the delegates exuded elegance as they graced the stage in their evening gowns. Tiglao stunned in a golden orange ensemble made dramatic with voluminous feathers.

Mexico bagged the Best in Evening gown award.

The finalists earlier shared their views on peace and violence while Michael Jackson’s ‘Heal the World’ played in the background.

In her spiel, Tiglao highlighted the corruption in the Philippines amid succeeding earthquakes that continue to hit different parts of the country.

By the end of the night, reigning titleholder CJ Opiaza will crown her successor, marking the end of her historic reign as the Philippines’ first Miss Grand International winner