‘No Filipino casualties yet in US attack’

No Filipino expatriate in New York and Washington has been reported to be among the victims of Tuesday morning’s (Tuesday night in Manila) worst-ever terrorist attack in the United States, Philippine officials said yesterday.

"We were checking all the hospitals in Washington and New York. There were no Filipino casualties reported," Vice President and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teofisto Guingona Jr. told reporters.

Acting Labor Secretary Manuel Imson also said they have received no report of Filipino casualties in the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.

Guingona said the Philippine embassies in Washington and New York were continuously monitoring developments, and have made themselves accessible to the people.

Other embassies, notably those in the Middle East, were also directed to be on alert and to submit hourly reports on their situation due to the possibility of a spread of terrorist attacks in their respective areas of jurisdiction.

"We will always be ready with contingency measures to evacuate our people," Guingona said.

He added that both the military and the police have also been directed to take extra precautions to prevent suspected international terrorist leader Osama bin Laden from entering the country.

"We don’t know the capability of these terrorists, so we have to be ready for any eventuality. But our attitude is still business as usual," Guingona said.

"Official reports we received indicated no casualties although we must admit that even the United States government is still yet to ascertain the number of deaths and injuries up to this time," Imson said.

Imson said at present, there are some 4,000 Filipino contract workers in Washington and about 10,000 in New York, most of them working in offices at the World Trade Center.

Imson added that the government has drawn up a contingency plan for the possible evacuation of Filipino nationals affected by the attacks, including those in the Middle East.

Labor attaches in countries near Afghanistan were directed to monitor the conditions and whereabouts of Filipino contract workers in these areas within the next three weeks.

Guingona also announced that he has formed a task force that operates round-the-clock to provide information to the general public about the attacks.

The task force can be reached through telephones 834-3333; 834-4940; 834-4997 or 834-4000.

For direct inquiries, the public may also call the Philippine Embassy in Washington at (202) 467-9300 or 467-9363, and the Philippine Consulate General in New York through (212) 764-1330 and 575-4774. – Delon Porcalla, Mayen Jaymalin