Manila - The United States on Tuesday presented rewards totalling 900,000 dollars to 12 Filipino seamen who helped successfully prosecute polluters of US waters.

Manila - Five people were killed and four remained missing in various accidents in areas pummeled by storm Hagupit in the Philippines, relief officials said Tuesday.

Two of the fatalities were drowned in a swollen river in the central province of Antique, two were buried in landslides in the northern city of Baguio and one was electrocuted in the northern province of La Union.

Rescuers were also struggling to extricate 13 miners trapped in a flooded shaft in a goldmine in Itogon town in Benguet province, 225 kilometres north of Manila.

Manila - Communist rebels ransacked a police station in a remote town in the southern Philippines and carted away a still undetermined amount of office equipment, a police report said Tuesday.

The rebels barged into the facility late Monday in Las Nieves town in Agusan del Norte province, 810 kilometres south of Manila, and hog-tied a police aide manning the station.

Investigators were still determining if the rebels were able to seize guns inside the armory. There was no police officer in the station when the incident occurred.

There was no reported casualties in the attack.

Cotabato City, Philippines - A pro-government militiaman was killed and four more wounded in an attack by Muslim secessionist rebels in the southern Philippines, a military report said Monday.

The report said the fighting erupted Saturday when about 30 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels attacked an army outpost in Maguindanao province, 960 kilometres south of Manila.

The rebels also suffered an undermined number of casualties, the report said.

Manila - Philippine shares climbed by 2.32 per cent on Monday, buoyed by news about the United States government's ambitious plan to revive its ailing financial system.

The Philippine Stock Exchange's 30-share composite index gained 57.34 points to close at 2,520.13 from Friday's close of 2,462.79.

A total of 1.32 billion shares worth 3.09 billion pesos (67.15 dollars) were traded.

Gainers outpaced losers, 73 to 21, with 44 issues unchanged.

Manila - One person was killed and thousands of passengers stranded as a tropical storm lashed the Philippines for the past three days, a government agency said Monday.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said the fatality was drowned after a motorized boat capsized Sunday while crossing a swollen river in Valderama town in Antique province, 435 kilometres south of Manila.

The NDCC said two other people remained missing while three others survived in the accident triggered by heavy rains brought about by tropical storm Hagupit

Close to 4,000 passengers have been stranded in different ports in central and eastern provinces after the coast guard banned vessels from sailing due to strong waves.