Filipino chefs serve up Pinoy pride in U.S.

Filipino chefs are serving up a third helping of Pinoy pride, as they bring together 18 dining establishments in the U.S. East Coast during the Filipino restaurant week. Even non-Filipino restaurants are joining this year's festivities. - The World Tonight, ANC, May 17, 2017

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Record-setting rains submerge parts of US Southeast

CHARLESTON, United States - Record rainfall left large areas of the US southeast under water Sunday as roads were closed and residents were warned to stay indoors.

The states of North and South Carolina have been particularly hard hit by heavy flooding, but the driving rain in recent days has spared almost none of the US East Coast.

The wild weather was blamed for at least four deaths in the Carolinas since Thursday.

The storms are part of a weather system separate from Hurricane Joaquin, which was downgraded to a Category Two storm as it headed toward Bermuda.

"We haven't seen this level of rain in the low country in 1,000 years," South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley said at a press briefing, urging people to stay inside to keep safe.

"This is not something to be out taking pictures of. This is not something that you want your kids playing in. The water is not safe.

"And a lot of areas across the state where you see this deep water, it's got bacteria in it. So stay inside and don't get in there," she stressed.

"This is an incident we've never had before."

President Barack Obama has issued an emergency declaration for the state, ordering federal aid for areas affected by flooding.

Historic Charleston submerged

Streets were submerged in the historic old town of Charleston, South Carolina, as non-stop rain battered the city, with flooding closing restaurants and bars.

"Right now, we are in life-saving mode," said Lieutenant Colonel Cindi King, a spokeswoman for the South Carolina National Guard.

"We are just focusing on helping our citizens."

The National Weather Service said the city had seen 14 inches (36 centimeters) of rain over the past three days, beating a previous record of 12 inches in 1973.

"It's the worst water I have seen in the 10 years I have lived here. Neighbors tell me it's the worst since Hurricane Hugo" in 1989, said 38-year-old Jamieson Clair, a resident of the city.

In hard-hit Columbia, the mayor ordered a curfew for the city from 6:00 pm to 6:00 am.

The Red Cross has opened 26 shelters across the state.

The University of South Carolina, based in Columbia, canceled all Monday classes.

More than 200 swift-water rescues have been reported since Saturday night, while the state's Department of Transportation said at least 211 state roads and 43 bridges were closed due to flooding.

The National Weather Service warned of "potentially historic and life-threatening flooding" across the southeastern United States.

Bermuda under threat

Forecasters said Joaquin now is closing in on tiny Bermuda, with a population of just 66,000, where the potential damage could rival what was seen in the Bahamas.

The storm still has winds of 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour, and is dumping heavy rain.

In the Bahamas, a low-lying archipelago, residents surveyed the damage after Joaquin destroyed homes and left some without power or phone services.

The Bahamas is home to 385,000 people and visited by far more tourists every year -- about 1.3 million.

Search for cargo ship

Rescuers were still frantically searching for the El Faro cargo vessel, with which contact was lost early Thursday as the dangerous weather system approached the Bahamas.

Coast Guard troops turned up "a number of different objects in the water" via an aerial search but were unable to confirm whether they were from the vessel.

"We found a few life rings, life jackets and there's been a report of possible oil sheen," Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Ryan Doss told AFP.

"We have boats in the water... they will be able to get to some of that stuff soon" he said, adding that it was "the first day of good weather and the seas are down one or two feet (one-third to one meter)."

Tim Nolan, president of the company that owns the El Faro, said it had sent its only other ship plus a tugboat in search of the missing vessel and had recovered "a container, which appears to be from the El Faro, and observed what appears to be an oil sheen."

En route from Florida to Puerto Rico, the 735-foot cargo ship was reported to be caught in the storm near Crooked Island, part of the Bahamas island chain.

It was from there that it sent a satellite notification stating the ship had lost propulsion and had a 15-degree list.

Twenty-eight Americans and five Poles were on board.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

US East Coast braces for 'historic' blizzard on Monday

A swath of the U.S. East Coast from Philadelphia to New York City to Maine was bracing for a potentially historic blizzard on Monday that is expected to dump as much as 3 feet (90 cm) of snow and snarl transportation for tens of millions of people.

The National Weather Service on Sunday issued a blizzard warning for the northern section of the East Coast from Monday afternoon until Tuesday, placing states from New Jersey to Indiana under winter storm watches and advisories. Airlines were already canceling hundreds of flights ahead of the storm.

"This could be the biggest snowstorm in the history of this city," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told a news conference, saying snowfall could reach up to 3 feet.

De Blasio told residents of America's financial capital and most populous city to stay off the roads and to "prepare for something worse than we have seen before."

The biggest snowfall on record in New York City was the storm of Feb. 11-12, 2006, that dropped 26.9 inches (68 cm), according to the city's Office of Emergency Management.

The NWS called the approaching system a "crippling and potentially historic blizzard," with many areas along the East Coast expected to see between 12 to 24 inches (30-60 cm) of snow. The New York City area could be the hardest hit from the storm with lashing winds and snowfall of 30 inches (76 cm) or more in some suburbs.

Delta said on Sunday it was canceling 600 flights because of the blizzard warning for the East Coast. Southwest Airlines said it had canceled about 20 flights and American Airlines had so far canceled a handful.

Cities along the heavily populated East Coast had snowplows and trucks to dispense road salt on standby. Stores have seen a rush of shoppers stocking up on essentials.

"People have been coming in since this morning, buying rock salt and shovels," said Michael Harris, who works at Ace Hardware in Wading River, New York.

The Philadelphia Streets Department said on its Facebook page that crews were preparing for a "messy Monday morning commute." The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation told travelers to postpone travel if necessary and carry emergency kits if they do go out.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation will have its entire fleet of snowplows, including 12 loader-mounted snowblowers, prepared to deploy, the governor's office said.

The NWS expects as much as 8 inches (20 cm) of snow for western Maryland and southern Pennsylvania, while parts of New Jersey through eastern Massachusetts may get 6 to 12 inches (15-30 cm) of snow by Tuesday morning.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Hurricane Arthur makes landfall on US East Coast

MIAMI - Hurricane Arthur made landfall on the North Carolina shore late Thursday, as millions of Americans braced for its impact along the East Coast on the eve of the Independence Day holiday.

The National Hurricane Center said Arthur made landfall around 11:15 pm (0315 GMT Friday) over the Shackleford Banks between Cape Lookout and Beaufort.

Just before it made landfall, Hurricane Arthur strengthened into a potentially destructive category-two storm.

The first storm of the Atlantic hurricane season was packing maximum winds of 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour, forecasters said, warning North Carolina -- home to many popular holiday destinations -- would bear the brunt of Arthur's fury.

North Carolina state Governor Pat McCrory said emergency preparation efforts had been made more complicated by the arrival of thousands of tourists, who have flocked to beaches for the annual July 4 holiday pilgrimage.

Heavy rain and strong winds lashed the North Carolina coast.

The storms is expected to churn up the coast and threaten areas as far north as Nova Scotia in Canada.

After ratcheting the hurricane up a grade, the National Hurricane Center predicted there would be "little change in strength," and that the storm would fizzle out to a post-tropical cyclone on Saturday.

But in the meantime thousands of people were already without power in North Carolina, news reports said, and there was localized flooding in areas including the coastal city of Wilmington.

"Our main issue is the health and safety of our citizens and those people who are visiting North Carolina," McCrory said.

Emergency declarations were issued by several counties in the southern state, which opened emergency shelters and ordered evacuations in low-lying areas.

"As the hurricane moves north, more counties are likely to declare a state of emergency," McCrory added.

National Hurricane Center forecasters warned of "large and damaging waves" and cautioned: "Preparations to protect life and property should have already been completed."

- No 'stupid hat' -

McCrory urged residents and tourists to use common sense, to stay out of the water and out of harm's way, with storm surges of up to five feet (1.5 meters) predicted.

Up to eight inches (20 centimeters) of rain were expected in coastal areas.

"Don't put your 'stupid hat' on," McCrory said.

"Let's hope for the best, pray for the best, that Arthur clears out quickly so we can all get back to celebrating our country's independence, with our families and friends on North Carolina's beautiful beaches."

As many as half a million visitors had been expected in the coastal Carolinas for the national holiday, the region's biggest tourist weekend.

Authorities issued a mandatory evacuation order for Hatteras Island and a voluntary evacuation order for Ocracoke Island, both in North Carolina's Outer Banks, CNN reported.

But it was not just North Carolina -- where tornado warnings were activated in some areas -- that was bracing for Arthur's impact.

The storm, which strengthened into a hurricane earlier Thursday, threatened to scuttle traditional Independence Day weekend picnics, parades and fireworks displays for millions of Americans along the East Coast, as far north as New England.

Dangerous storm swells were expected as far south as central Florida, weather officials said.

The Atlantic hurricane season began June 1 and runs through November 30.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com