Quake alert rouses netizens from slumber
Netizens were roused from sleep and aired their reactions on social media after receiving a mobile alert from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) about the magnitude-5.6 earthquake that shook Occidental Mindoro and felt in parts of Metro Manila in the wee hours Monday.
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the earthquake happened at 2:16 a.m. and its epicenter was recorded 31 kilometers southeast of Looc and had an initial magnitude of 5.4.
Moments later, a mobile alert was sent by the NDRRMC to inform the public about the shaking, said NDRRMC spokesperson Mark Timbal.
Twitter user @jjkfalsetto said the alert woke her up at 2:30 a.m. which may have triggered her anxiety.
"Idk (I don't know) if this is the effect of NDRRMC's alert that woke me up at 2:30 a.m. and triggered my anxiety but i feeeeel (sic) like absolute s***," she said.
Meanwhile, @michelle_dob complained about not getting an alert even if her mobile settings are designed to receive one.
"@NDRRMC_OpCen why I'm not receiving alerts? Naka on naman lahat (My settings are all turned on)," she said, tagging the Twitter account of the NDRRMC Operations Center.
One @ProudFaney said she was woken up by the loud alert around 3:30 a.m. but hopes that everyone is safe from harm.
"NDRRMC alert woke me up around 3:30 a.m. then ang ate ghorl nyo napa-balikwas ng bangon (your girl was forced to rise up). Then, I fell asleep after mag-sink sakin na lumindol (that an earthquake occured). I hope everyone is safe and good morning!," she said.
One @ViancaTan said the NDRRMC alert validated her "earthquake feels" and was thankful that she received one since she was living alone.
"I’m a light sleeper but the booze last night made it feel as if it was conscious dream from my end. But, voila! NDRRMC just validated my earthquake feels. The autopilot of living alone is to put it out there," she said.
However, the NDRRMC alert did not sit well with @neoljoahemino who got a terrible headache after being woken up.
"I woke up earlier because of this loud NDRRMC alert and now I have this terrible headache. I'm turning you off you little s***," @neoljoahemino said.
Timbal explained that it was imperative for them to send an alert whenever a disaster occurs to warn about the people who may have been affected.
"Required po talaga na magsend ng alert warnings si NDRRMC sa kahit anong oras (NDRRMC is required to send alert warnings anytime of the day)," Timbal said.
"We apologize that it may inconvenience some people but the overriding principle here is that they must be WARNED at any time that an emergency might happen. It is for the public good pa rin po," he added.
"Naiintindihan din po natin 'yun sir na baka mga pagod sa trabaho o kalaliman ng tulog kaya nagagalit 'yung iba. Pero wala talagang magagawa, kapag malapit sila sa area o mismo doon sa area covered by the emergency eh makatatanggap talaga sila ng alert (We understand that others might be tired from work or are in deep slumber that's why they get angry. But we have to do it, especially if they are located near or exactly in the area covered by the emergency, they will really get an alert)," he added.
According to Timbal, people who do not want to receive an alert may do so by turning it off in their notifications setting.
"But we counsel against it," he said.
The NDRRMC's mobile alerts are usually issued in times of disasters and calamities, including earthquakes and typhoons. It is part of the council's preparedness and awareness strategy.
Meamwhile, the NDRRMC has yet to receive a situation report about the extent of damage of the quake.
Timbal said there was no immediate report of any casualty in Looc.