EDITORIAL — Be prepared, always

The first day of classes, especially for those who have never been to school before, are supposed to be memorable.

However, for those in the schools affected by the 7.8-magnitude quake that hit parts of Mindanao yesterday, it became nothing short of traumatic.

One video circulating in social media shows what happened at the Mahayahay Elementary School in Malita, Davao Occidental, precisely when the quake hit.

At least those earthquake drills seem to have paid off; teachers and adults are telling the pupils to sit down and stay put as opposed to running around in a blind panic. We can also see how strong the quake was; even as the pupils sit or squat on the ground they are still being jolted by the tremor. A nearby shed also collapses, although it appears no one was seriously hurt.

We aren’t blaming anyone for what happened. Even with how far we have gone with science and forecasting, there’s just no accurate way of telling precisely where or when an earthquake will strike.

And who could have predicted that one would occur during the nationwide opening of classes for public schools? Disasters don’t care what day or occasion it is. Whether it’s a religious holiday --like what happened on Eid-al-Adha in 2013-- or on a school day like yesterday, the earth can shake anytime.

Our takeaway? We have to be prepared for when disasters happen.

Of course, this doesn’t just go for schools. It wasn’t just those that got hit yesterday after all; there was widespread devastation in various parts of Mindanao after yesterday’s quake. As of this writing 11 people have been confirmed dead while 142 were injured.

All establishments, as well as the local government units, have to be prepared for when the earth shakes and what to do immediately after.

This should be another sobering reminder that because the Philippines is located where it is --by this we mean along the Pacific Rim of Fire-- frequent typhoons aren’t the only disasters we have to contend with.