WORLD NEWS Mexican police have found five severed heads in front of a primary school in the Pacific coast

resort of Acapulco.It's unclear whether the gruesome discovery is related to extortion threats that led about 140 elementary schools in the city to close temporarily earlier this month after teachers and parents decided it wasn't safe enough to start classes. According to YAHOONEWS.COM state police say the five heads were found early Tuesday in a sack, along with a handwritten message threatening three alleged drug traffickers.The heads all appear to be of men. But some of the five headless bodies found elsewhere in the city a day earlier were too badly burned to immediately determine their gender.

NEWS FROM THE NATION

President Aquino said he was closely monitoring Typhoon Pedring and ordered concerned government agencies to coordinate mitigation efforts in hard-hit areas in northern Luzon and Metro Manila.Pedring hit the northeastern side of Luzon before dawn Tuesday, bringing maximum sustained winds of up to 140 kilometers an hour and gusts clocking in at 170 kilometers an hour.But state weather bureau PAGASA said the typhoon weakened after crossing the rugged terrain of the Sierra Madre mountain range. According to ABSCBN NEWS.COM Aquino said he had been informed of the preventive evacuation of families in Camarines Sur and Albay as well as the voluntary evacuation in Marikina.He added that power was already being restored in several areas within Manila Electric Co.'s franchise after some lines tripped due to high winds.

BUSINESS NEWS

The Department of Energy (DOE) is eyeing to bid out up to 10 coal exploration contracts by next month, a ranking DOE official said.Energy Undersecretary Jay Layug said these coal areas would likely be located in Mindanao.Layug, however, said at this point, they have firmed up only five of the 10 possible areas. After the successful launch of the Public Energy Contracting Round (PECR) for oil and gas last July, the DOE had said it would be preparingfor another PECR, this time to coal contracts. ABSCBN NEWS.COM added that over a hundred renewable energy service contracts were also signed by the DOE the past months

HEALTH NEWS
An herbal supplement that is widely sold in the United States and Europe to relieve urinary symptoms in men with an enlarged prostate has no benefit over a placebo, a US study said Tuesday.The global market for saw palmetto extract is about $700 million a year, but a randomized trial at 11 sites in North America showed that even triple doses of the over-thecounter drug neither worked nor harmed the patients. YAHOONEWS.COM said measurements showed the drug, even when increased in dosage over 72 weeks, had no

impact on urinary symptoms such as nighttime urination or incontinence, and did not improve sexual function or allow men to sleep better. HOLLYWOOD BEAT Hip-hop artist Petey Pablo has been sentenced in North Carolina to almost three years in federal prisonafter pleading guilty to possessing a stolen firearm.The U.S. Attorney's Office says the 38-year-old rapper was sentenced Monday to 35 months behind bars in U.S. District Courtin New Bern. Pablo's real name is Moses Barrett, and he's from Wake Forest, N.C.According to YAHOONEWS.COM Petey Pablo was arrested last year while attempting to clear security at Raleigh-Durham International Airport for a flight to Los Angeles. Authorities found a loaded gun in a bag that had passed through an X-ray machine.Authorities say the investigation showed the gun had been stolen during a home burglary in Gardena, Calif., in 2005.

ENTERTAINMENT

The remains of the husband of actress Camille Prats were laid to rest Tuesday afternoon at the Manila Memorial Park in Dasmarias, Cavite.Camille with her son Nathan can't help but cry while paying her final respects to her husband. According to ABSCBN NEWS.COM Camille's brother John Prats as well as their relatives and close friends were there to condole with Anthony's family.Linsangan, 31, passed away last Friday after battling nasopharyngeal cancer for years.Nasopharyngeal cancer affects the nasopharynx or the uppermost region of the throat.

SPORTS NEWS

The second Summit Water Camsur Marathon, which drew a record field of 21,000 runners last Sunday, is way beyond the sport itself.Camsur Gov. LRay Villafuerte said more than the trophies, medals and cash prizes that were given away, the event meant so much more for the environment.He said for every registered runner, the country's No. 1 sports tourism destination has vowed to plant 10 trees, meaning for this event, they will plant 210,000 trees.ACCORDING TO abscbn news.com The program was launched last Feb. 23, and President Aquino came over to give his blessings.