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Sunday, January 31, 2016

Philippine Consulate General in New York Holds Third Annual Assembly for Geographic Wardens

New York – The Philippine Consulate in New York held the third Warden’s General Assembly on Saturday, 16 January 2016 at the Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Center.

The Warden’s General Assembly is an annual gathering of community volunteers who have signed up to be part of the Consulate’s Geographic Warden System project. The project was launched in 2013 as a way of tapping Filipino community leaders to serve as point persons or “Wardens” in their locales and be first responders when members of the community are “in distress”, or when the area is threatened or affected by natural or man- made disasters.


Thirty-eight Wardens from the eight states under the Consulate’s jurisdiction showed up to listen to resource persons from the New York Asian Women’s Center, the New York Police Department and the US Federal Emergency Management Agency speak on a variety of topics, including violence against women, police community resources and disaster preparedness during its morning session.



The General Assembly devoted the second part of the program to a short interactive workshop. The participants were organized into regional break-out groups that focused
on exchanging information and views about federal, state, local government and non- governmental resources available in their respective communities to residents in need of information and assistance.


The Wardens pose for a group picture with Consul General Mario de Leon, Jr. (center). 

Through its more than three years of existence, the Wardens have proven to be invaluable sources of help, giving aid and providing field reports, especially on high-profile situations like the Boston Marathon bombing and Hurricane Sandy in 2013, as well as the Philadelphia train derailment and Manhattan building collapse in 2015. Aside from on- the-ground reportage on such major events, the Wardens have also provided invaluable assistance in more ordinary but equally important cases in far-flung areas where Filipinos, with no one else to turn to, have sought the help of the Consulate to address their domestic or legal situations.

Towards the end of the day, participants were one in saying that the General Assembly has not only been opportunity to touch base and network with the Consulate and other volunteers, but more importantly a valuable opportunity to increase and enhance their knowledge of the possible issues and cases a typical Warden may encounter. This year’s assembly was especially significant, as the Consulate released it’s Manual on Assistance to Nationals (ATN), a reference booklet containing the procedures and best practices, as well as a community resource guide. The manual was developed to serve as a guideline for Wardens on giving immediate assistance to Filipinos in distress, and is expected to be their primary reference in dealing with the most common ATN issues faced by the Filipino community in the Northeast of the United States. 

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Photos | Jonas. Day After. Brooklyn.

Scenes from Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Photos: Lambert Parong for Kababayan Media/ CC BY























PORT AUTHORITY ALERTS & ADVISORIES | UPDATE ON CONDITIONS AT PORT AUTHORITY FACILITIES

PATH

At 930 am service will begin between JSQ and WTC. Service will continue to run from Grove to 33rd via HOB until further notice.

BRIDGES & TUNNELS

All Port Authority Bridges and Tunnels are open in both directions.


AIRPORTS

The airlines have indicated a substantially reduced schedule starting around midday Sunday. Please contact your airline for more information.

Blizzard 2016 | MTA Winter Storm Update

Service has been restored to portions of the above ground NYC Subway network with limited service at this time. Crews are out across the system working to assess conditions and clear signals, switches and rails of snow. Snow fighting equipment has been deployed across the MTA rail and subway network to perform heavy duty removal. 
Modified NYC Transit and MTA Bus service resumed at 7:00 a.m. following an overnight route by route assessment of road conditions.
Service remains suspended on the Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad and Staten Island Railway (SIR). Service will be restored as conditions warrant throughout the day.
We advise customers if at all possible to remain at home during the duration of this storm.
MTA Bus Time™ will be available for restored routes. MTA Train Time™ arrivals data remains unavailable at this time on the MTA web site and on third-party mobile apps.

Saturday, January 23, 2016

PORT AUTHORITY BUS TERMINAL TO REOPEN AT 7 A.M. SUNDAY

The Port Authority Bus Terminal will reopen at 7 a.m. Sunday after closing late this afternoon due to the major snowstorm. 

Some bus operations will resume beginning at 8 a.m., but the agency urges passengers to check with their bus carriers before coming to the terminal to confirm their trip is taking place. 

For the latest information throughout the storm, please go to www.panynj.gov@pathalerts or @panynj on Twitter and sign up for PA alerts at www.paalerts.com.

ALL PORT AUTHORITY BRIDGES AND TUNNELS WILL REOPEN AT 7 A.M. SUNDAY

Following the lifting of travel bans into New York City by Governor Andrew Cuomo and Governor Chris Christie, which began this afternoon at Gov. Cuomo's request, the Port Authority will reopen all its bridges and tunnels at 7 a.m. Sunday. This includes the George Washington Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, Bayonne Bridge, Goethals Bridge and Outerbridge Crossing. 

These closures were designed to ensure safety of the public during the height of the storm. 

The Port Authority continues to urge motorists to use caution during their travels. Speed restrictions at the bridges may be in effect, as well as along roadways to and from the crossings. 

For the latest information throughout the storm, please go to www.panynj.gov@pathalerts or @panynj on Twitter and sign up for PA alerts at www.paalerts.com

Blizzard 2016 | MTA Winter Storm Update

A major snow storm continues to impact the MTA service area.
While service remains suspended on the Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad, NYC Transit and MTA Bus service and the above ground portions of the NYC Subway and Staten Island Railway (SIR), crews will be working overnight to assess conditions and clear signals, switches and rails of snow. Snow fighting equipment has been deployed across the MTA rail and subway network to perform heavy duty removal. An assessment of conditions will be made at 6:00am 
Road crews will be out overnight assessing each bus route an eye toward restoring limited bus service at 7:00am Sunday morning.  
Underground only subway service will remain in effect overnight and early Sunday morning.
We advise customers if at all possible to remain at home during the duration of this storm.
Train arrival data on the MTA web site and on third-party mobile apps will not reflect actual service availability. 

Stay Safe NYC | Mayor de Blasio to Lift Travel Ban at 7 AM

NEW YORK—Mayor de Blasio today announced New York City will lift the travel ban at 7 AM tomorrow in coordination with New York State. Individuals in violation of the ban will be subject to enforcement actions, including fine, summons, and/or arrest. The Mayor continued to urge New Yorkers to refrain from all travel unless necessary, and to use all precautions to stay safe while outdoors.
"We will lift the travel ban at 7 AM tomorrow morning. We continue to urge New Yorkers not to travel unless necessary. Our plows will still be clearing the streets, and we must keep the streets passable for emergency vehicles. Whenever possible, New Yorkers should stay indoors until this storm passes," said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Blizzard 2016 | MTA Winter Storm Update

Due to deteriorating weather conditions, and for the safety of MTA employees and customers, NYC Transit has begun an orderly shutdown of all elevated and open cut (exterior) portions of the subway system. The last trains to leave terminals have departed. The subway will operate underground only for the remainder of this storm. Staten Island Railway (SIR) will also be suspended. NYC Transit and MTA Bus local, limited and express bus service is currently suspended. Access-A-Ride service has begun an orderly shut down of service. 

During the duration of this storm MTA Subway Time and MTA Bus Time will no longer be available. 

The MTA advises customers who do not have to travel to remain at home until the current weather conditions subside and roads cleared for safe operations.

Crews from various subway divisions have been pre-positioned to respond to areas prone to weather related problems, and platforms are being cleared of snow and salted. The MTA fleet of deicer trains are currently running to keep rails free of ice accumulation and snow build up. The Snow Thrower and Jet Blower trains are also manned and are being deployed as necessary to remove any snow from the rails. These trains will be operating system wide during the duration of the storm.


The Underground Subway Service will run as follows:

A Subway Line Icon

207 St – Euclid Av

C Subway Line Icon

Suspended

E Subway Line Icon

Jamaica Center – World Trade Center

S Subway Line Icon Rockaway Park

Suspended

B Subway Line Icon

Suspended

D Subway Line Icon

205 St – B’way-Lafayette

F Subway Line Icon

179 St – Jay St-MetroTech

M Subway Line Icon

Suspended

G Subway Line Icon

Court Sq – Bergen St

L Subway Line Icon

8 Av – Myrtle-Wyckoff Avs

J Subway Line Icon

Essex St – Broad St

Z Subway Line Icon

Suspended

N Subway Line Icon

Lexington Av-59 St – 59 St, Brooklyn via R through Lower Manhattan

Q Subway Line Icon

Suspended

R Subway Line Icon

Forest Hills-71 Av – 95 St, through Lower Manhattan (except Midnights)

R Subway Line Icon Shuttle

59 St, Brooklyn and 95 St, Shuttle (Midnights only)

S Subway Line Icon Franklin Av

Suspended

S Subway Line Icon 42 St

Times Sq-42 St – Grand Central-42 St

1 Subway Line Icon

168 St – South Ferry, trains skip 125 St in both directions

2 Subway Line Icon

3 Av – 149 St – Flatbush Av

3 Subway Line Icon

148 St – Utica Av

4 Subway Line Icon

149 St-Grand Concourse – Utica Av

5 Subway Line Icon

Suspended

6 Subway Line Icon

Hunts Point Av – Brooklyn Bridge

7 Subway Line Icon

Hunters Point Av – 34 St Hudson Yards

Staten Island Railway icon

Suspended

 

Movies | Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo now available for global audience via Filipino movie-streaming site Cinetropa

Cinetropa.com, the Filipino-movie streaming site based in the US, kicks off the New Year with the streaming of Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo (International Version) in HD on January 26. The movie is also available to watch in other countries.

An official entry to the 2014 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), the Robin Padilla-starrer won more than 20 awards, including Best Picture from the MMFF, FAMAS and the PMPC Star Awards as well as five Gawad Urian nominations. The producers, Tuko Film Productions and Buchi Boy Films, have since re-edited the film and created a more lucid and powerful international cut of the feature. Tuko Film Productions and Buchi Boy Films are also the same team behind last year’s critical and commercial hit, Heneral Luna
Six other independent films are already streaming at cinetropa.com. These include two films by Clodualdo del Mundo Jr. (screenwriter of such classics as Maynila Sa Kuko ng Liwanag and Kisapmata) namely Pepot Artista and Paglipad ng Anghel (Flight of an Angel). Also available are the acclaimed LGBT documentary titled Jazz in Love, the Coco Martin-starrer Jay, the controversial feature MNL 143, and the award-winning fable, K’na The Dreamweaver, a heartrending love story set among the T’bolis.
Cinetropa is the only movie-streaming site in the market exclusively dedicated to Filipino films. Aside from independent titles, the site will soon showcase classic Filipino favorites. With a starting rate of USD$3.99 in the US and other countries, and PHP190 for Philippine-based viewers, film enthusiasts can now enjoy a wide range of Filipino movies in HD. 
Unlike illegal and other streaming sites, Cinetropa is backed by Filipino independent producers and investors, with the purpose of providing local filmmakers more exposure for their films on a global scale both for Filipinos and non-Filipinos discovering or exploring Philippine cinema and culture. 

Cinetropa offers a revenue-split model with Filipino filmmakers so they can sustain their passion for filmmaking and give them the leeway to make more films and reach out to more viewers anywhere in the world.


For more details and updates on upcoming movies, visit cinetropa.com. On Facebook, Cinetropa is at https://www.facebook.com/cinetropa/.