No travel advisory for US yet: gov't

MANILA, Philippine (Xinhua) - The Philippines has not issued a travel advisory discouraging Filipinos from traveling to the United States amid the two deadly explosions that separately rocked Boston and Texas this week, the Department of Foreign Affairs said today.

"It is not advisable at this time to issue a travel advisory. Our posts in the US are closely monitoring the situation there," said Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez in a press briefing.

However, Hernandez said, Filipinos in the US were advised to "remain vigilant and to continue following developments in their area as well as to observe the usual caution when attending or going to large public gatherings."

In New York, he said the Philippine consulate there received word from the diplomatic security unit of the US State Department, saying no Filipino nationals were injured in the Boston bombings that marred the city's annual marathon on Monday.

"To ensure all Filipinos in Boston are safe and accounted for, our consulate in New York continues to monitor the developments with US authorities and Filipino American leaders," Hernandez said.

There is also no reported Filipino casualty in the massive explosion that ripped through the West Fertilizer Company in West Texas on April 17, said Hernandez, adding that the area is far from the concentration of Filipino population in Texas.

The estimated 160,000 Filipinos in Texas are based in central Dallas and south Houston, Hernandez said.