Dinosaur tracks in the Philippines?
This was how a Reddit user described a damaged road along Taft Avenue in Manila that recently received some buzz on Facebook.
The Redditor posted a photo of a road that was dotted with potholes on the online forum r/Philippines.
The photo also showed that the area was busy with trucks, jeepneys, and other vehicles plying the thoroughfare. There were also commuters on the sidewalk.
“Dinosaur tracks uncovered from 65 mil years ago due to heavy rain,” the post reads.
The caption was a play on the recent headlines reporting about the discovery of dinosaur tracks from 113 million years ago at the Dinosaur Valley State Park in Texas after a severe drought caused waters in a river there to dry up.
Park spokesperson Stephanie Salinas Garcia told CNN via an email that the tracks belonged to two different dinosaurs—the Acrocanthosaurus and the Sauroposeidon.
The former is about 15 feet tall and weighs seven tons. The latter is taller, about 60 feet tall, and weighs around 44 tons as an adult.
The Redditor, meanwhile, shared this post on August 25. It had since received 3,500 upvotes on the forum.
Pilipino Star Ngayon also posted this photo on Friday, August 26.
The news outlet likened the potholes to moon craters.
“’SAN KA PUNTA? TO THE MOON!’” the report reads.
“Ikinadismaya ng mga netizens ang isang litrato kung saan makikita ang mala-crater na lubak na daan sa Quirino corner Taft Avenue. Maliban sa lubak na daan, reklamo din ng uploader na wala umanong maayos na lanes sa nasabing daan kahit na may ipinapatupad na NCAP,” it added.
The name of the original uploader was not mentioned in the post and it was only mentioned as a contributed photo. PSN reported that the image was taken in Quirino corner Taft Avenue.
How social media reacted
Some social media users also shared their fair share of witty and funny descriptions and comments regarding the road.
“Philippines’ newest tourist attraction,” one Facebook user quipped.
“Hala bakas ng mga paa ng buwaya yan ah!” another user described.
“Ah yes, Lubacan 2.0,” one Redditor said.
“I’ll bet those tracks were from the Kleptosaurus,” another Redditor said.
Meanwhile, there were also calls to repair the road first before enforcing the controversial no-contact apprehension policy of the government.
“Puro kabig sa NCAP di mapaayos daan. Pag iniwasan mo, violation agad sa NCAP. Only in Manila,” one user said.
RELATED: Fix road signs, traffic lights: Suggestions to improve no contact apprehension policy implementation
Others who said that they live near the area shared that that part of the thoroughfare has been repaired time and again for years.
“I live near this intersection. Trust me, dahil ito sa walang katapusang cycle ng paghuhukay ng Maynilad. This part of Malate is so hopeless na all the way to Vito Cruz. Dati naman maayos yang mga kalsadang yan,” a Reddit user said.
Some online users, meanwhile, expressed dismay over the persistent problem of substandard roads getting repaired every now and then, or in time for the campaign season.
“This is the sad reality in our country. Perfectly good cemented roads that were supposed to last 50 to 100 years were ‘repaired’ and asphalted so they would last just 3 to 6 years or 1 term for the local government official. This problem has persisted for decades. Our roads are no longer safe,” one Redditor said.
“Sinadya yan ganyanin para kunwari kailangan ng ayusin. Maayos naman yan kailan lang nanggaling ako dyan hindi yan ganyan,” one online user commented.