Newsbriefs

DAVAO CITY

Pagasa installs weather stations

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) has installed six Automatic Weather Stations (AWS) in Southern Mindanao to boost disaster preparedness.

The AWS were put up in Baganga, Davao Oriental; Jose Abad Santos, Davao del Sur; at the Pagasa office here; in the Island Garden City of Samal; Nabunturan in Compostela Valley; and at the Davao Oriental State College of Science and Technology in Mati, Davao Oriental, said Anthony Sales, director of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in the region.

The AWS are stand-alone devices that measure weather-related factors and transmit data from remote areas to the Pagasa head office in Manila on real-time basis.

Four more units were installed in Davao under the collocation project with Smart Communications Inc., according to a news release. The facilities will be turned over to the local governments today. The DOST central office in Manila said 87 rain gauges have been installed under the collocation project with Smart. Inquirer Mindanao

TAGUM CITY

3 gov’t hospitals get facilities

The Department of Health (DOH) has turned over at least P51 million worth of facilities and equipment to three government hospitals in Davao del Norte last week.

Abdullah Dumama, DOH director for Southern Mindanao, said the new hospital facilities in Carmen and Kapalong towns and in the Island Garden City of Samal included two delivery and operating room complexes worth some P33 million.

Davao del Norte Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario said the Davao del Norte Hospital would also receive an additional fund of between P4 million to P8.7 million for facility upgrade in the next two years. Frinston L. Lim, Inquirer Mindanao

BATANGAS

Manhunt on for village chief

The police here have launched a manhunt for a village chief of Malvar town who shot dead a jobless man on Saturday.

Ernesto Cuenca, Bagong Pook chief, fled after repeatedly shooting and killing Edward Basilan, 30, at 5:45 p.m. on Saturday while the latter was talking to a group of women and children, according to Malvar police chief Senior Insp. Gaudencio Aguilera.

He said Basilan suffered multiple bullet wounds in different parts of the body and died on the spot. Police on Sunday recovered the tricycle owned by Cuenca, which he used to flee. Marrah Erika Lesaba, Inquirer Southern Luzon

Policeman drowns

A police official drowned at the sea water off Barangay Ligaya in Mabini town on Sunday morning.

Senior Inspector Renato Samson, who was assigned at the San Juan City police station, drowned at around 9:30 a.m. while he was swimming just off the shore of Barangay (village) Ligaya, said Chief Inspector Ferdinand Ancheta, Mabini police chief. Marrah Erika Lesaba, Inquirer Southern Luzon