55 High School Students Collapse After Quake Drill

[Americano]

This is such an amazing story that I had to share it with everyone.  Why would 55 high school students collapse and have to be taken to a hospital just for participating in an Earth Quake drill?  What will happen when they really have an Earth Quake?  In my opinion they are very mentally weak to collapse so easily. I wonder if they have regular fire drills or would that be more than the students could take.

 

"The school's management has apologized."  Apologized for what?  They didn't do anything wrong but they did prove that the students are not ready for an emergency at school.

 

Here's a link to the news story and video:

 

https://anc.yahoo.com/news/55-high-school-students-collapse-after-quake-drill-125034122.html

[JJReyes]

Fantastic drill! All of a sudden adults were confronted with a very realistic situation.

 

Reminds me of Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast. Some listeners did not realize it was a dramatic interpretation of a novel. 

[Old55]

Read other news stories like this one over the years, good thing none were hurt. What would cause this?

[Call me bubba]

What would cause this

 Mass hysteria. 

over the years I too have read similar stories, 1 that comes to mind was some girls(students)

started to have either visions or some mental issues 

,after the 5th or 8th student came down w/this"issues" some smart doctor

suggested that a STRONG SHOT of some anti psychotic or anxiety  drug.

read heard that they had the syringes ready,

they didnt need the parents permission as it was a MEDICAL emergency.

would you believe with in MINUTES that the students was "cured"of this medical issue.

 

2. i have noticed that some people including students do not understand the meaning

of A PRACTICE DRILL. when they hear "earthquake or fire drill "

they dont hear or comprehend

what the word DRILL(means)

:

[Malcolm Graham]

Well the report does say the drill was meant to be carried out the next day.  As they had just felt a 5.6 earthquake the previous week panic can set in easy if the unexpected happens.  I say felt because Manila got the shockwaves at intensity 2 and 3

[Americano]

I wonder if the students who collapsed even knew what an Earth Quake is. If the ground or floor wasn't shaking then why would they be afraid and collapse?

 

I'm sure the school doesn't want any recommendations but here's mine anyway. All of the students who collapsed should be seated close to the exit door in each classroom, lunchroom, auditorium, etc. All students should be taught how to do the one man and two man fireman's carry. Some of the students in each classroom or room should be designated to carry out the students who collapse. Some plastic stretchers as shown in the video should be purchased and in each room. And, all of the teachers and maybe some of the oldest students should be required to attend CPR training.

 

I have been in a few Earth Quakes since I moved to the Philippines but in none of them did I have enough time to get outside and a safe distance from the building before the Quake stopped, so I think Earth Quake drills are almost useless, except for designating a specific place for each class to meet in order to know how many are trapped inside the school buildings. In a severe Earth Quake like I have been in two times you can't run anyway because the floor under your feet is shaking so much but it greatly increases your chance of falling down stairs or just falling down so you get trampled by others who are panicking, but Fire Drills are very useful because usually there's a lot more time for everyone to evacuate the building.

 

I have a question for the school, why did the students have their arms above their heads while exiting the school?  Holding their arms above their heads effects their balance which only slows down their ability to exit the school as soon as possible. Surely the school management doesn't think the students can hold up the building if it tries to fall down on them.

[JJReyes]

Heatstroke is another possible reason. The drill was noontime and the children were kept outside under the sun. Combine that with the excitement of participating in a drill. 

[Americano]

I thought about Heatstroke or Heat Exhaustion too but most Filipino kids are use to the heat and being in the sun. And, surely the school management were smart enough not to keep them in the sun for hours until they were ready to collapse. After maybe a roll call which only takes a few minutes they should have been ready to go back inside.

 

My guess is they have some kind of mental weakness or mental defect that caused them to collapse.  Maybe its a similar mental weakness that some people have that collapse at the sight of blood. I never understood why some women and girls collapse at the sight of blood when they have a month period. Do they collapse every time they look at their napkin with blood on it?

[Americano]

Here's three websites which say its safer for students to get under their desk or a sturdy table during an Earth Quake because they can't run outside. I saw people trying to run when we had the 2 strong Earth Quakes here but all they were able to do was hold on to something with very little forward movement until the shaking ended. When the shaking ends is the time to get outside before the next shaking begins, so the school is following the wrong procedure for an Earth Quake. I wonder if anyone has brought that to their attention.

 

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865578269/ShakeOut-dont-freak-out-during-earthquake-drill.html?pg=all

 

http://www.mnn.com/family/protection-safety/stories/earthquake-safety-tips

 

http://online.tarleton.edu/ACEF/EarthquakePreparednessforEducationalFacilities/EarthquakePreparedness_print.html

Edited July 6, 2014 by Americano