Phl on alert as tropical storm 'Gorio' lands

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The government has alerted all concerned departments as Tropical Storm Gorio (international name "Rumbia") made a landfall in Eastern Samar before noon today.

In the latest weather bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) placed eight provinces in northern part of the country and five others in central Philippines under public storm warning signal No. 2 and 26 provinces, including the National Capital Region, under signal No. 1.

The storm has maximum sustained winds of 65 km per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph.

In an interview over a state-run radio station, deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte said that the government has provided P6.9 million ($159,353) worth of emergency relief resources for those who would be affected by the weather disturbance.

"We continue to monitor those areas (affected) in cooperation with the local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (DRRMCs)," she said.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that as of 2 p.m. local time Saturday, 6,572 passengers, 49 vessels, 318 rolling cargoes and 13 motor bancas were stranded in eastern Regions.

At least four domestic flights were also canceled due to bad weather.