Philippines still on red alert for NKorea's rocket launch

MANILA, Philippines - The government’s disaster response agency on Tuesday said that it will remain on red alert in connection with North Korea's another plan to launch a rocket into space this month.

Undersecretary Benito Ramos, head of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), said that the Philippines will remain on red alert while it is waiting for word fro the Philippine defense attaché in South Korea on the date of the rocket launch.

Ramos said that the NDRRMC will continue to update residents and fishermen in the exclusion zone, which includes Sta. Ana in Cagayan to Polillo Island.

He also maintained that the NDRRMC's action plan is just part of the government’s precautionary measures. He maintained that the rocket is not hostile and is just part of a scientific exploration.

A report by Associated Press said that North Korea will push through with the launching of a long-range rocket into space within the month.

The report, quoting an unidentified spokesman for the North Korean Committee of Space Technology, said that the liftoff window has been extended until December 29.

It added that the unnamed spokesman told state media that scientists found a "technical deficiency in the first-stage control engine module of the rocket." The statement didn't elaborate but said technicians were moving ahead with final preparations for the liftoff from a west coast launch site.

The second day of North Korea's extended 20-day launch window began on Tuesday morning without signs of a liftoff. The specifics of the rocket's technical problems aren't clear, but state media put out an overnight dispatch detailing the unusually cold weather and heavy snow hitting the northern part of the Korean Peninsula.

It's North Korea's second attempt of the year, and the fifth since 1998, to launch a rocket that the United Nations, Washington, Seoul and others call a cover meant to test technology for missiles that could be used to strike the United States. They have warned North Korea to cancel the launch or face a new wave of sanctions. with AP