A strong aftershock measuring Intensity 5 hit at 9:41 a.m. Monday in the city of Ormoc, which was near the epicenter of the strong July 6 earthquake that hit the Kananga region in Leyte Province.
Some youth and students of Ormoc National High School were among those hurt in a stampede that ensued, with broken bones and fainting among the cases responded to.
Panic also took over at an evacuation shelter while distribution of relief assistance to the earthquake survivors was going on.
The students had made a mad rush to get out of the classrooms, apparently throwing to the wind the training from past earthquake drills, especially the prescribed Duck, Cover, Hold lessons spearheaded by the government disaster authorities.
Some teachers there told InterAksyon they were puzzled why class were allowed to be held even as the emergency situation has not quite been resolved.
“Many pupils wanted to get out of the buildings right away, contributing to the momentary chaos,” one student said.
The Ormoc City Hall was also quickly emptied of people when the aftershock hit. Mayor Richard Gomez and Renato Solidum, PhD, the chief of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, were among those inside the building.
Solidum explained that aftershocks should not be an unexpected phenomenon, especially after the strong earthquake. He also advised those staying near identified earthquake faults to stay clear of possible danger.
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