No Pinoys hurt in blast, building collapse in New York

MANILA – The Philippine Consulate in New York said no Filipinos were among the dead and injured in the reported gas leak blast that caused two buildings to collapse in Manhattan. "No Filipino fatality or anyone injured from the community was reported by our community members," said Consul Bong Cariño. Nevertheless, the consulate is still closely monitoring the developments and has been tapping the help of community members for any information on Filipinos who were directly affected by the incident. "In a city like New York City where there is diversity in nationalities, we cannot accurately pinpoint to any Filipino fatality or injured among those reported. Three people died from the blast and 69 others were injured while nine remains missing. But Cariño said the names of those who died and injured were mostly Spanish names. "So what we do, we gather more information from our community members, particularly the church groups, and Filipino organizations here, and among medical and nurse practitioners in hospitals where the injured were treated," he said.