A female customer caught the attention of the online community after getting trapped inside a thrift store at a shopping mall in Recto, Manila.
Facebook user Mich Keyshia Guevarra on Thursday, March 27, shared that she was in the fitting room of a thrift store in Isetann Recto when the lights suddenly went out, leaving her trapped inside.
“Akala ko brownout lang, pero maya-maya, narinig ko na isinara na talaga ‘yung pinto,” she recounted in a Facebook post.
“Na-alarma si beki kasi naka-panty lang ako! Nagmadali akong isuot ‘yung short ko, nag-flashlight ako, tapos na-realize ko — sarado na talaga at wala [ng] tao,” Guevarra added.
She said that she got “nervous” and knocked on the store windows in hopes that someone would hear her. To make herself visible, she also moved some shoes that were blocking the door.
Guevarra said she was thankful that staff from a different store noticed her pleas for help.
“Nagulat pa siya bakit may tao sa loob. Sinabihan niya agad ‘yung guard, ang talak pa, naiuwi daw ng may-ari ‘yung susi!” she added.
“So na-stress pa si bakla kasi may pasok pa ako bukas, baka hindi ako makauwi, tapos nilalaro pa ako ng mga guard na doon na daw ako matulog,” Guevarra said.
The owner of the thrift store was eventually found at a different branch.
“Paglabas ko, mga anim na guard nandun, pati may ari sa kabilang branch, super nakakahiya,” she said.
Guevarra also posted a video of her situation at that time.
In another post, Guevarra shared the note she had written on her mobile phone, which she showed to the guards on the other side when she got locked inside the store.
“Nagsusulat lang ako, bigla namatay ilaw, akala ko brownout, sarado na pala,” she wrote.
“Para kaming magkabilang mundo ang atake,” Guevarra said as a caption.
Guevarra also shared a post from a friend who informed Filipinos online that she had been locked inside a thrift store.
Her friend’s post was uploaded at 8:28 p.m. on March 27.
“Minsan na lang mag-ukay, nasaraduhan pa, atake Bela Padilla, help, please. Sa Recto po ako, second floor sa Isetann,” Guevarra wrote.
By 10:35 p.m. that same day, Guevarra updated her friends, sharing that she had finally gotten out of the thrift store. She also reposted a meme, relating it to her experience at the time.
“Me paglabas ko sa ukayan,” Guevarra said as a caption.
A thrift store, locally known as an “ukayan,” is a retail shop that sells second-hand or pre-owned items, typically at lower prices.