The Ilocos Times

  At least 131 market stalls were burned in the Batac Public Market firer that began on July 5 and continued into the early hours of July 6, 2026. (Doms dela Cruz) By Dominic B. dela Cruz, Staff reporter City of Batac —At least 131 business stalls were reduced to ashes in the fire that hit the Batac Public Market on July 5, 2026, starting at about 8:50 pm and continuing until around 6:00 am the following morning, Batac Mayor Mark Christian “Markee” Chua said. In response, the Sangguniang Panlungsod, headed by Batac Vice Mayor and presiding officer Abert D. Chua, immediately held a special session to declare the city under a state of calamity , following the recommendation of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government . The declaration was also needed for the release of the city’s Quick Response Fund. Fire/Sr. Insp. Heinrich Gudoy and other members of the inspection team attended the session, in t...

Batac Mayor Markee Chua leads the launching of the GCash City-zen's ID as part of the 19th Charter Day celebration, making Batac the first local government unit in Ilocos Norte to implement the program. Also present were Governor Cecilia Araneta-Marcos, Ms. Trisha Dizon, GCash public sector head for North and Central Luzon, and city officials. (Photo by Dominic B. dela Cruz) By Dominic B. dela Cruz, Staff reporter CITY OF BATAC —The city government of Batac marked a milestone in digital governance during its 19 th Charter Day celebration on June 23, 2026, launching the GCash City-zen's ID and becoming the first local government unit in Ilocos Norte to implement the program. Batac Mayor Mark Christian “Markee” R. Chua and Trisha Dizon, GCash public sector head for North and Central Luzon, formally signed a memorandum of agreement during the launching. Designed to improve government service delivery, the GCash City-zen's ID allows residents to receive financial as...

  By Dominic B. dela Cruz,  Staff Reporter City of Batac —The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has launched a unified 911 satellite command center (SCC) in Batac at the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Station in Barangay Quiling Sur, this city.  A unified 911 satellite command center located at the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Station in Barangay Quiling Sur in the City of Batac. ( Photo courtesy of CMO Batac) The Ilocos Times learned that the newly established Unified 911 Satellite Command Centers (SCCs) in Regions I, II, VI, and VIII are now fully operational, further strengthening the country’s emergency response network and bringing life-saving services closer to communities. The SCC facility in Batac is one of the four newly established SCC in the country and will serve the entire Region I and which aims to improve emergency coordination and communication among response agencies to provide faster and more efficient assistance to comm...