BAGUIO CITY – What could have been an expensive vacation in this mountain resort city turned out to be a fruitful one for four teachers who decided to visit the country’s Summer Capital for the first time to escape from the extreme heat of the Metro Manila area. This developed after the four teachers, who were on board a Baguio-bound Victory Liner bus, were chosen by the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club (BCBC) as lucky summer visitors when they were able to qualify on the criteria crafted by the members of the selection committee for this year’s search. The four lucky summer visitors were already accorded the traditional red carpet treatment which will end up on the afternoon of Easter Sunday, thus, they will be able to visit all the premier tourist destinations in Baguio and Benguet with a nightly provision of entertainment including free accommodation, food, guided tours and souvenir items. The chosen lucky visitors were Donah Wynzette Tan, 30, a resident of Atis Street, Mapayapa, Quezon City but hails from Jolo, Sulu; Delsa de Guzman, 24, single, a native of Antique; Lorie Joy Canares, 25, a native of Masbate; and Retchie Paredes, 28, a native of Bohol, and all residents of Kasiyahan Street, Holy Spirit, Quezon City. (Dexter See)

Diarrhea outbreak claims 2 in Kalinga

TABUK, Kalinga – Two persons died while many others were treated of acute gastro-enteritis or commonly known as diarrhea, in what authorities consider as an outbreak in the first quarter of the year. Provincial Epidemics and Surveillance Unit (PESU) officer Jose Pardito Jr. of the Provincial Health Office (PHO) said the two deaths due to severe dehydration were reported from Upper Kalinga. From January to the end of March this year, the PHO recorded 318 patients who came for diarrhea treatment – which about 20 percent higher than the cases recorded during the same period in the previous year. In January, the PHO recorded 135 patients, 115 in February, and 68 during the whole month of March which is considered as leading towards a diarrhea outbreak primarily because of the worsening effects of the onslaught of the drought triggered by the El Niño phenomenon. An outbreak was declared in two areas in Rizal municipality – in Barangay Kinama with 38 cases, and San Francisco with 20 cases. The cases took place in just two weeks. (Dexter See)

Abra irrigators act vs. dry spell

BANGUED, Abra – Thousands of irrigators in this conflict-stricken province are now working out stricter water management to cushion the impact of the onslaught of El Niño to the various agricultural plantation sites so that the productivity of farmers will be sustained. Farmers located at the downstream part of the service areas of the Abra River Irrigation System complained they are now experiencing scarcity of water which has greatly affected the growth of their crops which were planted for the dry season cropping. Based on reports submitted by the different district offices of the Abra Irrigators Association, one of the major factors for the decrease in the volume of water that flows into the irrigation canals is siltation, thus, the need to dredge the irrigation canals coupled with the implementation of stricter water management so that all farmers will receive equitable share of water for their farms. Results of further investigations showed that the steel plates that covers several manholes of the box culverts located in the villages of Bumagcat, Bagalay, and Gaddani in Tayum town have been stolen, thus, foreign materials could easily enter the culverts and impede the smooth flow of water. (Dexter See)