Japan Earthquake and Possible Tsunami in the Philippines

I have seen videos of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on YouTube and they really look so horrifying.


We fervently pray that we will be spared from such disasters here in the Philippines. Japan must have suffered tremendous loss from the experience but they are better prepared. They have installed disaster control and recovery mechanisms (especially for earthquakes) within most of their buildings. I have seen one when we had our plant visits during my training in 2009. That is why, even if they were hit with an earthquake having a magnitude as high as 8.9 (as reported by most sites), the destruction was not as much as what would have been anticipated if the earthquake hit our country.

For disasters like this, the best we can do is be vigilant but not panic. Be responsible for what you tweet or broadcast on the Internet because that could cause tension among people and could even cause more trouble. I said this because someone tweeted about a supposed earthquake in Samar but when we verified it, it was not true. =( I mean, I’m happy that Samar was not hit but unhappy that an irresponsible person joked about it.

I was told by my officemate that we should always have a disaster kit with us (especially those who are living in high-risk areas). Our disaster kit should contain:

• water
• food (good for at least 3 days – maybe easy-to-open canned goods)
• first aid supplies
• sanitation supplies
• flash light
• communication device (radio)

I was really concerned when I read the news article about the provinces that are likely to be hit by tsunami because it included Davao and Surigao del Sur. I am glad that our government is doing whatever they can to save and protect their people from such disaster. I have read that they are already performing emergency evacuation for residents who are living in coastal areas.