National Days of Mourning for DILG Jesse Robredo

In honor of the late DILG Secretary Robredo, the Philippines is going to observe days of mourning. Here is the news:

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino signed last night Proclamation No. 460, declaring National Days of Mourning for Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo starting yesterday until the day of his interment.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Aquino signed the proclamation upon arriving from Naga City where he escorted the body of Robredo back to his family from Masbate City, site of the plane crash that killed the secretary and two pilots.

As provided for by law, the proclamation said the national flag “shall be lowered to half mast from sunrise to sunset in all government buildings and installations in the Philippines and in our posts abroad, for a period of six days.”

From yesterday until the date of internment, the national flag shall be lowered to half mast in Malacañang, the City of Naga, and in all offices and installations of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Local Government Academy, National Police Commission, Philippine National Police and Philippine Public Safety College.

Debtis of the plane that crashed found

Some debris of the plane carrying DILG Secretary were found by the search and rescue team. Here is the news: 

MANILA, Philippines (2nd UPDATE) - Navy and civilian divers have found on the seabed parts of what could be the aircraft carrying Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo and three other people that crashed Saturday off Masbate, Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas said Monday night.

Roxas said one member of a 3-person foreign diving team who is helping in search and rescue operations found a debris field around 180-210 feet underwater and roughly 2.5 kilometers from the shore.

Video footage taken by one of the divers shows a piece of debris on the seabed.

"Pic of debris found roughly 200 ft 2.5 km frm shore," Roxas said on Twitter.

He said a 4-man team of Navy technical divers confirmed the debris field is same area found by a civilian diver.

"[They found] glass pieces of cockpit. They marked it," Roxas said.

In a press briefing, Roxas said it is still too early to conclude that the debris is indeed from the ill-fated Piper Seneca plane, which carried Robredo, pilots Jessup Bahinting and Kshitiz Chand, and the interior secretary's aide Jun Abrazado.

Only Abrazado so far survived the crash.

"'Di masabing galing o hindi sa eroplano [ iyung debris]," Roxas said.

Robredo and the pilots are still missing

There were already more than three hundred in search and rescue operation for the DILG Secretary Robredo but they have not found them yet.

Here is the news:

President Benigno Aquino on Sunday took the lead in the search for Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, a day after a light plane carrying the local government chief and three others crashed in waters off Masbate.

Mr. Aquino flew to Masbate early Sunday morning to oversee the search for the wreckage of the four-seat Piper Seneca that crashed into the sea while attempting an emergency landing about 5 p.m. on Saturday.

More than 300 rescuers were scouring the area about 500 meters from the shore of Masbate City for Robredo, who was missing along with the plane’s two pilots.

Robredo’s bodyguard, Chief Insp. Jun Abrasado, made a dramatic escape from the doomed plane and was rescued by fishermen. Abrasado was helping in the search, officials said.

Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas, who accompanied Mr. Aquino and was designated as official spokesperson for the search, said special sonar equipment had been flown to Masbate to help in the search operation after some debris, including one wing of the missing plane, was recovered.

“We just want to do everything we can to save him [Robredo],” Roxas said in a message on Twitter.

“We remain hopeful that Secretary Robredo was just carried by the current … and that he will be found,” Roxas said, adding that Mr. Aquino was “very emotionally attached” to Robredo and was doing everything he could to help find him.

Four people were on the private plane that was heading for Naga City in Camarines Sur province from Cebu City when it malfunctioned and crashed in waters between Masbate and Ticao Islands.

Missing, aside from Robredo, were Capt. Jessup Bahinting, the pilot and CEO of Aviatour Air that owned the aircraft, and Kshitiz Chand, the Nepalese copilot.

At about 3 p.m. Sunday, Masbate Bantay Dagat reported to City Mayor Socrates Tuason that a large object had been detected on the seafloor.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) also reported that a Navy vessel’s sonar had detected “something metallic” on the sea floor.

“The sonar showed it was something metallic. But it’s not definite yet if that was really part of the airplane,” NDRRMC Executive Director Benito Ramos said by phone.

Plane Crash

Search and rescue operation is going on in the planes crash site of Interior Secretary's plane hours ago,

Here's the news: 

A Cessna aircraft carrying Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo crashed in the sea off Masbate City Saturday afternoon, according to a Masbate official.

Masbate Vice Governor Vince Revil said the plane carrying Robredo and several others crashed 150 meters away from the Masbate airport.

“Nag-emergency call that they are going to have an emergency landing sa Masbate City Airport pero nag-crash ang plane about 150 meters away from the airport , nag-crash sa dagat,” Revil told “TV Patrol: Weekend.”

Revil said Robredo’s aide, identified as Capt. Jun Abrazado, has been rescued from the crash site. Revil said Abrazado was the one who pinpointed the location of the crash site.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing for Robredo and the two pilots.

Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang, meanwhile, confirmed that search and rescue operations are currently ongoing.

“The aircraft was off the coast of Masbate when contact was lost earlier today. We will be updating the public as details are confirmed: speculation is not useful at this point,” Carandang said in a statement.

According to Revil, Robredo’s plane came from Cebu and was headed to Naga City.

Engine trouble

Airplane Crashed into a building in Africa

JOHANNESBURG - An Angolan TAAG Boeing 737 crashed in the northern city of M'banza Congo on Thursday, killing at least six people and injuring others, Angola's ANGOP news agency said.

The airplane was carrying 78 passengers and was en route from Luanda to M'Banza Congo, which is in northern Angola near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The agency said the plane lost control upon landing and crashed into a building, destroying it. It said a number of severely injured passengers were taken to hospital for treatment.

Source: MSNBC


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