9 Dead and More Than a Dozen Injured in Road Accident in Tabuk, Kalinga

Nine people died while more than a dozen others were injured (some in critical condition) when a dump truck figured in an accident in Tabuk City, Kalinga on Saturday morning. The incident occurred in the vicinity of sitio Binongsay in barangay Malin-awa in said city. The group was on their way to a traditional event called "posipos" in the nearby barangay of Balawag when the accident transpired.

Based on initial reports, the open truck carrying around 40 passengers malfunctioned on a steep section of the road. The truck started backing down. The driver lost control and the truck eventually fell off the road.

Responders immediately rushed the injured passengers to the Kalinga Provincial Hospital and Almora General Hospital. Some were referred to higher medical facilities. One injured passenger reportedly passed away while in transit to Tuguegarao City.

Mark John Lazaro, the driver of the truck, has surrendered to the Kalinga police and is currently under police custody.

Source: ONE Kalinga

Reported names of casualties:
1. Ghelyn Kim Gallema
2. Rufina Dawagon
3. Jules Alvester
4. Edmund Mangagom
5. Crisanta Casirayan
6. Lucita Mangagom
7. Doming Matalang
8. Gaspar Edoc
9. Ngi-iw Gaano

Baguio City and Benguet to Experience 12-Hour Brownout on Tuesday (April 23)

Most of Baguio City and Benguet will experience a 12-hour brownout on Tuesday (April 23) according to a "notice of power interruption" released by the Benguet Electric Cooperative Inc. or BENECO. The cooperative announced the scheduled blackout on Wednesday (April 17).

The power interruption will affect the whole of Baguio City and Benguet with just a few exempted areas. The interruption will run from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm. However, BENECO clarified that the brownout was scheduled by the NGCP (National Grid Corporation of the Philippines) and not by BENECO itself.

The NGCP cited the following as the reasons for the scheduled power interruption:

1. Preventive maintenance and testing of the La Trinidad SS 300MVA Power Transformer No.1 and associated Feeders.

2. Corrective and preventive maintenance along La Trinidad-Sagada 69kV Line and La Trinidad-Sablan 69kV Line.

3. Correction of defects at La Trinidad Substation

4. Shifting of power source of Mankayan-Sagada 69kV Line Segment from La Trinidad-Mankayan(LI)/ Sagada 69kV Transmission Line to La Trinidad-Mankayan(L2)/ Lepanto 69kV Transmission Line in preparation for the implementation of re-routing works at Tower Nos. A & B along the La Trinidad-Mankayan 69kV Line. La Trinidad- Mankayan(L1)/Sagada 69KV Transmission Line will be de-energized from Tower No.74 to 139 only.

Areas affected by the scheduled power interruption are as follows:
1. Whole of Baguio City except Pacdal, Mines View Park, Gibraltar, Pucsusan, Lualhati Village, Outlook Drive, Lucnab, Country CLub Village, South Drive, parts of Cabinet Hill-Teachers Camp (near and along South Drive), Happy Hallow, DPS Compound, Greenwater Village, Military Cut-Off, Sta. Scholastica, Scout Barrio, Upper Dagsian, Lower Dagsian, Hillside, Gabriela Silang, Camp 7, Camp 8, Poliwes, San Vicente, Balsigan, Kias, Loakan Liwanag, Loakan Proper, Loakan Pidawan, Bubon, EPZA, Pinesville, PMA Fort Del Pilar, Atok Trail, Loakan Magsaysay, Loakan Apugan, Springhills, Kadaclan Village, VOA, DENR area.
2. Whole of La Trinidad except Beckel and parts of Ambiong near Lamut
3. Whole of Tuba except Camp 4, Camp 3, Camp 1, Twin Peaks, Tabaan Sur, Ansagan, along Kennon Road
4. Whole of Bakun except Kayapa
5. Whole of Bokod except parts of Ambuklao and Bobok Bisal
6. Whole of Kibungan except Tacadang
7. Whole of Atok, Buguias, Kabayan, Kapangan, Mankayan, Sablan, and Tublay

Edward Kelly Of Team Lakay Victorious Over Sung Jong Lee In One Championship: Roots Of Honor

Edward Kelly is back in the winning column with an impressive victory over South Korea's Sung Jong Lee in the under-card of One Championship: Roots of Honor. In a competitive fight that extended to the second round, Kelly outworked Lee in front of thousands of fight fans at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. With Kelly raining punches and Lee not intelligently defending himself, referee Kemp Cheng had no choice but stop the bout, awarding Kelly a well-deserved TKO victory.

But the path to victory wasn't an easy one for the Team Lakay fighter. He was taken down by Lee in the first few seconds of the fight. He had to escape several submission attempts from the South Korean.

The first round was also marred by an illegal strike by Kelly when he kicked Lee in the head while they were both grappling on the the mat. He was given a yellow card by the referee which potentially means he might lose 10% of his purse to his opponent.

In the second round, the two picked up where they left off in the first. Lee preferred to grapple while Kelly kept his striking output. With Lee burning himself out and emptying his tank, Kelly increased his output and pressure. With Kelly working on his ground and pound and Lee covering up, referee Kemp Cheng stopped the bout.

With the TKO win, Kelly improves his record to 12-7 while Lee drops to 2-5.

Eric Kelly Loses To Kwon Won Il Of South Korea Via First-Round KO

Eric Kelly, one of the pioneers of mixed martial arts in the Cordilleras, if not in the Philippines, had another bad night when he had his lights shut out at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City in the under-card of One Championship: Roots of Honor. He succumbed to the punching power of Kwon Won Il, a lanky South Korean who took the fight on short notice. Kelly was supposed to lock horns with Kai Tang of China but the latter pulled out of the card. Reason for the shift hasn't been disclosed by the promotion.

The bout started normally with each fighter trying to read each other's movements. The beginning of the end came when a straight right hand from Kwon landed flush on Kelly's jaw and put him on the mat. A few hammer fists later, the referee stepped in to end the bout.

Kwon Won Il was vacationing in Manila when he was called to be Kelly's opponent. He last fought for One Championship in February in Singapore. He was submitted by Masakazu Imanari, the legendary Japanese fighter.

This is Kelly's sixth loss in a row. All losses came by either knockout or submission prompting fans to suggest that maybe it's time for him to hang up the gloves. Whatever route he chooses, he will always remain as one of those who paved the way for Cordilleran and Philippine MMA. With a professional career that started in 2009, Kelly currently holds a record of 12 wins and 7 losses. He had wins over Mitch Chilson, Jens Pulver, and Rob Lisita.

Kapangan Grand March 25-Kilometer Road Run Set For May 5

Gear up, runners. Another running event is coming your way on Cinco de Mayo. The town of Kapangan is cooking up a 25-kilometer road run that stretches from La Trinidad through Tublay and finally into Kapangan. The race is part of the events scheduled for the town's upcoming fiesta.

The run is named after the Grand March, a type of dance that's very popular in the town during occasions like weddings, reunions, anniversaries, graduations, and holiday celebrations. The story has it that the dance traces its roots during the turn of World War II. American soldiers stationed in barangay Sagubo performed a "grand march" when they learned of the Allied victory in the war. Locals replicated the moves of the dance and over time, it spread throughout the town.

In 2017, the town council enacted an ordinance declaring the Grand March as the town's official dance. The goal of the ordinance was to institutionalize the dance to ensure its preservation and continuity with upcoming generations of i-Kapangans. The provincial board of Benguet also gave the ordinance their support and approval.

Road runners will be treated with views like this along the route. Photo by Daniel Ted C. Feliciano/The Cordilleran Sun

The Kapangan Grand March Road Run came to fruition through Mark Fermin of Igohiking in partnership with various hiking groups and the local government units of Kapangan, Tublay, and Kapangan. For more information about the run, visit the run's Facebook event page here.

Mt. Pigingan Trail Run: Brace Yourselves For The Unforgiving Heat

I don't know how many times I've climbed Mt. Pigingan in Dalupirip, Itogon. Probably five or six times. I'll always remember those climbs for the difficult assault to the summit and the unforgiving heat. The hike to the top isn't by any means a long one. It's just difficult because of the heat. It doesn't help that large sections of the trail are open with very little options for shade. It's for this reason that in some of the instances I've been there, I often resorted to running instead of hiking.

I would usually run until I get to the next shaded section of the trail. I'd either rest or walk until I get to another open section of the trail. And then I would repeat the process. Running the trails of Mt. Pigingan is fun especially the downhill from the summit to the banks of the Agno River below.

Since embracing the sport of trail running last year, I've always wanted to go to Mt. Pigingan and run its trails, not just hike them. At one point, I even planned to run from Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya, get to the summit of Mt. Ugo, then proceed to Mt. Pigingan. Unfortunately, that's too much of a challenge especially for a newbie runner like me. I've climbed Mt. Ugo a few times and the trail from Kayapa to the peak of Mt. Ugo is in itself a difficult trail. Needless to say, I rightfully shelved the plan of traversing from Mt. Ugo to Mt. Pigingan.

It's been a while since I've climbed Mt. Pigingan. All of my trips this year in Dalupirip was to climb Mt. Marikit, a lesser known mountain range on the shadows of Mt. Ugo. Last time I've heard, Mt. Marikit has been closed to hikers due to the forest fires that ravaged its slopes last February. If I want to go back there again, my only choice is to climb Mt. Pigingan.

I was in the process of finalizing the itinerary of a climbing and camping event there this coming April when a friend notified me of a trail running event to be held there on the same month. So there was an immediate change of plans. We will cancel the hiking and camping trip and sign up for the trail run instead. What can I say, the timing is perfect.

The bridge that spans over Agno River in sitio Tabu. Photo by Daniel Feliciano/The Cordilleran Sun.

The run will be on April 21 which means we have about four weeks to train and prepare. It also happens that we are planning to join the HP by TP on April 14. HP by TP is a road run but it stretches for more than 50 kilometers. If I'll run it, will I be able to recover and run the Mt. Pigingan Trail Run just a week later? There's only one way to find out. And that is to sign up for both.

If I'm not mistaken, the race director for the Mt. Pigingan Trail Run will be Jonel Mendoza, the man behind the King of the Mountain Trail Run series. The man's a veteran of the sport and an experienced race director so I'm expecting a well-organized event. With that said, see you Dalupirip on the 21st of April. For more details about the trail run, visit the Facebook event page for it here.

Jeremy Pacatiw Of Team Lakay Defeats Mark Alcoba Via Submission

Jeremy Pacatiw of Team Lakay extended his winning streak to 3 with a dominant victory over Mark Alcoba in the undercard of Brave Combat Federation: Storm of Warriors on Friday night (March 15). In front of a raucous crowd at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Pacatiw outstruck and outgrappled Alcoba enroute to an arm-bar submission victory in the third round.

Pacatiw mixed things up with leg kicks and takedowns. He would go high with kicks then catch Alcoba off-guard with takedowns. Alcoba is as tough as they come but he has very little to offer to stop Pacatiw's pressure. When on the ground, it's all Pacatiw as he grapples, maintains his positions, and goes for multiple submission attempts. Alcoba was on defensive and survival mode for the duration of the fight.

The end came in the third and final round when Pacatiw saw an opportunity for an arm bar. He tightened his grip and Alcoba had no choice but tap out.

With the victory, Pacatiw improves his record to 6 wins and 3 loses. Alcoba drops to 4 wins and 2 losses. Pacatiw has been fighting for Brave since 2016.