Hello hello from Quezon City, Philippines! What a way to start the year eh? The year/decade seems to not be going well.
First World War III started to trend on Twitter a few days after new year. And then Australia got the worst forest fire ever (?). And now this happened.
We've got falling ash all over the place due to the Taal Volcano eruption. Here's my take on what happened.
Sunday January 12, 2020
I was minding my own business online when my brother suddenly said Taal Volcano had exploded, or something. At first I wasn't really bothered because my attention was elsewhere. I mean come on it's so far away.
Checking Google Maps this is the distance from where we live in Quezon City up to the area of the natural phenomenon.
My next thought would be, of course the people there should flee and evacuate the area. I was still focused on other things, online work and such.
In the evening I decided to finally go to mass and then watch Star Wars: Rise of the Skywalker. I've already seen it but because I so love trending #ReyLoLove, I just had to rewatch it on the big screen.
Surprisingly my bro told me to bring and use a surgical mask or face mask outside. Apparently the ash fall had already reached Metro Manila. 😱
Sometimes I can be dense. I thought, why is it important to wear this mask? I'm just going out and watching a movie afterwards. I didn't think the volcanic ash would affect me at all. But of course I am thankful for the concern so I brought the mask with me. I still didn't wear it on the way to mass though. 🤦
Afterwards I walked and rode a jeepney and got off at another street to get a ride to Cubao. This time I was seeing other people wearing the same face mask my bro gave me. Uhmmm. It wouldn't hurt to wear it right? So okay I finally succumbed to the "pressure". 😂
On the way to the mall I checked my Facebook and saw posts abt the ash fall and masks and such things. Mkay. Flights even got cancelled just because of the natural phenomenon. Whoa. I now started to realize this was getting serious.
An online friend of mine also got her flight cancelled. I guess she won't be leaving the Philippines for the meantime. By the time I bought my movie ticket and such I decided it was indeed a good thing my bro gave me one of these.
But then people online started saying it's not for haze or ash but for blood or liquids. Uhmmm. Also, I could possibly still breathe in the ash fall from the sides of the mask. I'm sure of it. Didn't think to buy any N95 mask though. 🤔
Anyway so after watching the movie, I can't help but still be happy I watched it even with the environmental hazard going on outside. At first I still didn't wear the mask as I stepped out of the mall. But then the ground sounded and felt kinda rough and crunchy with every step I made.
I looked around and since it was already around 12 midnight, there weren't many people around at all. Somehow the roads didn't look any different to me as I walked towards the jeepney route. And then I see this:
Well now, certainly this is not just normal everyday dust. Still there's something beautiful to see here in Cubao. Same as last time, they have this decoration up in one street.
Still got the Christmassy vibe I see. 😄
Anyway on the way home I saw people wearing masks and others who also didn't think it mattered to wear any nose covering at all.
Even with the volcanic ash falling, I still felt I should walk to the tricycle station near home. Apparently it was around 1.2km. 🤷
Halfway there I decided to use my jacket hoodie. Too late but still better than nothing right? Also I decided to drop by KFC and buy take out before going home. I felt weird kinda looking all covered up when other people obviously didn't care same as I did earlier.
When I got home guess what? I found out I did have some ash particles in my scalp. 😂 It's like black sand grains actually. Ah well. At least there's no denying what was happening.
Afterwards due to the Star Wars fever I felt, I decided to watch the first of the latest trilogy movie: The Force Awakens. Yay! 😄
Monday January 13, 2020
Well, everything is still normal at home. Seems like it. Apart from noisy chickens at 5 am there isn't much difference here. Thank you Lord. 🙏 I'm glad we're too far away from the volcano.
The last time something like this happened was in 1991, when Mt. Pinatubo erupted and also spread some volcanic ash all over the place.
At the time we were living in the province further north so we were also far from the disaster. Thank God.
This is why I also don't remember ever experiencing any problem with volcanic ash. God is good indeed. I consider myself lucky. All I can do is pray for those who were affected. It's no joke to leave your house and have no vehicles to use to evacuate from the area.
The Situation and What's Been Happening
Good thing our Bayanihan culture is still alive and kicking. Some people offered to hose clean vehicle windshields for free and give out N95 masks for free too.
More people even offered to go around the area in Batangas to give free ride service outside of the danger zones going to evacuation centers. Here's one news video for you to watch.
Of course there are those who are selfish and take advantage of the crisis. Ugh.
Imagine criticizing the president and the government when in fact that's why there are local government units to respond to such calamities. Also even if there's no media coverage on what the government bodies are doing, it is not good to discredit the people working hard to save others instead of the rest of us just being keyboard warriors. Tsk tsk. Some people can still be bad even in the face of a natural calamity.
What about the Health Hazards of Volcanic Ash?
All the stuff Taal volcano spewed of course got blown away by the wind. The direction went north so that's why we experienced ash fall here in Metro Manila and further as well.
People then started panic buying masks here in Metro Manila. I thought it was an over the top reaction but of course you can't blame people for being afraid. These things don't happen everyday so how should we know right?
Like me, I thought the air was filled with just the same as those we inhale like smoke from vehicle exhausts and the usual city air pollution. Ugh, I couldn't have been more wrong.
I was asking my bro yesterday why I needed to wear the mask and all he could say was to avoid getting respiratory sicknesses. Heh. Hey I thought I'd be safe from it because I have my trusty superfoods health drink. I drink it everyday so what's the worry? WRONG! 😂
The body is not going to be immune to sicknesses forever especially if we disregard the health hazards. Even if I have something to help me make my immune system stronger and healthier, it's still a good idea to keep our bodies safe from anything that can make us sick.
Why is volcanic ash dangerous to inhale? Well it turns out it is not just ordinary dust. Look at this.
Nope, I wouldn't want to damage my lungs with rock and glass particles, thank you very much.
Helpful infographics started to surface too, like these:
However a Twitter thread also claimed some Thai scientists and the general public are spreading fake news. They say the alternative of using two tissues under the usual surgical face mask in lieu of N95 masks is not true.
Well what can we do instead? Others are saying it is better to just use a damp/wet towel instead of the above in order to protect the lungs. Well whichever people choose to use I hope we all don't get any grave illnesses from the ash fall.
Good thing our scientists also held press cons for the public to be more aware.
Business as Usual?
So it looks like it's still a normal business day for most of us. Due to the work holiday it seems more people were able to call me today to inquire about the lot for sale in Tandang Sora. 😆 Just goes to show how mild the effect of the ash fall is to us as compared to those near Batangas. Thank you Lord! 🙏
As for those sellers who are taking advantage of this situation in the wrong way well let's just say I hope they realize the error of their ways. Kudos to the government for issuing this statement for the commercial abuse others are doing.
People are tweeting pics of overpriced face mask receipts and such. Good luck to those greedy merchants. Hah.
Also, government work and school classes in all affected areas are suspended today until tomorrow. There's even a report that this situation can take months before it goes back to normal. Oh noes.
The only other good thing about this is, my online friend/real estate client can start going about fixing their property issues since their flight back to the US got cancelled/delayed.
Environmental Facts and Animal Concern/Rescue
Of course let's not forget the pets and other animals too. I've seen articles and videos of people going back to rescue animals. All that were rescued were washed in the nearest and safest available bodies of water and other places.
It's good there are also those who have moved to save the animals too. Advisories were also given on what to do when we encounter endangered birds.
Good thing there aren't too many casualties (people) this time. I mean how are we going to prepare for disasters and calamities like these? It's good we have PHIVOLCS, they were able to warn those living in the area way before it even erupted. It's just that there are people who are really hardheaded. Tsk.
Meanwhile a volcano article has gained millions of views due to this catastrophe. Why not when it's basically saying it's not the end of the world yet.
The article states that when volcanoes erupt, it's only because the Earth is cooling itself. Now this made me think about climate change and global warming. Does this mean if we make the world hotter because of carbon emission and pollution more volcanoes will erupt? Does it affect the temperature outside the Earth's core or no?
So far not even the article author has responded to my tweet. 🤷 Hey I'm just curious is all. Whoever are experts on the subject are free to answer. 😄
The Beauty in Natural Calamities
Nature can be scary but it can also be beautiful. A number of videos and photographs have surfaced showing lightning from the eruption. Can't help but admire how it looks. If only it weren't so dangerous.
I think a better caption would be lightning came from the volcano. It was caused by electrical discharge from volcanic ash and not due to thunderstorms. 😂
Also here is an incredible timelapse video of what happened. 😱
Isn't it amazing? Wow, to have captured something so dangerous but fascinating. Just wow. Kudos to Joshua Bobadilla.
With that I end my post with this humorous pic from reddit.
So how has your January been so far? 😅
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