February 6, 2012

(AP photo)

On February 6, 2012, at around noon (9 pm Sun. 2/5 RMT) - a strong 6.9 magnitude earthquake shook the island of Negros in the Central Visayas, Philippines.

The epicenter was located in the town of Tayasan, which is next to my parent's hometown of Ayungon, Negros Oriental. Most of the deaths and devastation happened near there, in the towns of Guihualgan and LaLibertad. But Ayungon was terribly hit nonetheless.

By the time I had heard about it (it was Monday morning here) - I immediately tried to call mom and dad - couldn't get through after countless attempts, so I turned on the TV and scoured the internet in hopes of getting any news.

Much to my dismay, since it happened on a remote island consisting of small towns and rural areas, it did not get a lot of news coverage here in the States. Here is a sample of what little TV news coverage we saw. And here is a page from the Denver Post website - with photos of some of the damage.

I'm thankful for Facebook, as that was my main source of info last week. Many of my relatives are on there, and some of them posted even while the "linog" (earthquake) was happening. I hope to be able to post some of their pictures on this page.

That first day was spent mostly talking with my Stateside relatives - trying to gather as much info from them as they were able to talk briefly with their loved ones who also live in Ayungon. By the time Monday night rolled around, I had talked with everyone except my parents, but I knew they were ok. My sister called later that evening, saying that she was able to get a hold of them and confirmed they were shaken but all right.

Earlier that morning at our Moms in Prayer time (a group of moms from our school who pray for our kids and the school) - we prayed for all those affected by the earthquake, and God faithfully and lovingly poured His peace in my heart, and I knew that mom and dad were all right.

I joined a Facebook group and kept a vigilant watch over my relatives' pages while continually trying to get through on their cell phone. I finally got to talk with them 2 days later. It was a relief to hear their voices. I will re-tell their side of the story in another post.