State-run schools in a city in the Philippine capital region have shortened class hours due to extreme heat, the latest measure as sweltering temperatures in Asia raise health risks and present challenges to governments and businesses.
“Our utmost priority will always be the welfare of our children,” Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte said in a statement. “Since the summer heat is too much to bear, especially in classrooms, we welcome the implementation of blended, modular, or shortened class periods for public schools.”
The Philippines has been experiencing scorching spring weather, with the heat index already reaching the “danger” category. The measure, which takes into account air temperature and humidity, is considered at the danger level between 42°C and 51°C.
Photo: REUTERS
The index reached that stage in eight areas of the country on Friday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said.
The Southeast Asian nation on Tuesday raised an El Nino alert, forecasting the weather pattern associated with drier conditions and reduced rainfall to emerge from next month, and saying it could persist until the first quarter of next year.
Temperatures have also been climbing across other parts of Asia in the past few months. While this time of year is typically the hottest for parts of Southeast Asia, the soaring heat continues a pattern of severe weather over the past few years that is testing the ability of governments to protect public health and prevent disruptions to recovering economies.
The Quezon City Government said shortened classes would be from 6am to 10:30am for the morning group and 2pm to 6:30pm for the afternoon group.
Airlines in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Singapore yesterday canceled flights to and from the Indonesian island of Bali, after a nearby volcano catapulted an ash tower into the sky. Australia’s Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia all grounded flights after Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki on Flores island spewed a 9km tower a day earlier. Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, India’s IndiGo and Singapore’s Scoot also listed flights as canceled. “Volcanic ash poses a significant threat to safe operations of the aircraft in the vicinity of volcanic clouds,” AirAsia said as it announced several cancelations. Multiple eruptions from the 1,703m twin-peaked volcano in
A plane bringing Israeli soccer supporters home from Amsterdam landed at Israel’s Ben Gurion airport on Friday after a night of violence that Israeli and Dutch officials condemned as “anti-Semitic.” Dutch police said 62 arrests were made in connection with the violence, which erupted after a UEFA Europa League soccer tie between Amsterdam club Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv. Israeli flag carrier El Al said it was sending six planes to the Netherlands to bring the fans home, after the first flight carrying evacuees landed on Friday afternoon, the Israeli Airports Authority said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also ordered
Former US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi said if US President Joe Biden had ended his re-election bid sooner, the Democratic Party could have held a competitive nominating process to choose his replacement. “Had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race,” Pelosi said in an interview on Thursday published by the New York Times the next day. “The anticipation was that, if the president were to step aside, that there would be an open primary,” she said. Pelosi said she thought the Democratic candidate, US Vice President Kamala Harris, “would have done
Farmer Liu Bingyong used to make a tidy profit selling milk but is now leaking cash — hit by a dairy sector crisis that embodies several of China’s economic woes. Milk is not a traditional mainstay of Chinese diets, but the Chinese government has long pushed people to drink more, citing its health benefits. The country has expanded its dairy production capacity and imported vast numbers of cattle in recent years as Beijing pursues food self-sufficiency. However, chronically low consumption has left the market sloshing with unwanted milk — driving down prices and pushing farmers to the brink — while
RSS