BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — A harrowing account of systemic failure and alleged government neglect surfaced online after a power outage plunged a public hospital’s emergency room (ER) into darkness, leaving patients—including an accident victim—helpless and terrified.

A furious resident, who brought his father to the facility, detailed the ordeal in a social media post describing the experience as a “slap in the face” and a grim reflection of “the government’s true valuation of citizens’ lives.” The writer, who asked to remain anonymous, said the scene revealed the collapse of a healthcare system stretched beyond its limits.

The shock of the queue

The ordeal began not with triage, but with bureaucracy. Upon arrival with a patient in need of immediate care, the resident said they were told to join a line.

“You have to queue, like you’re waiting for a concert ticket, while your loved one is in pain,” he wrote.

He described the agony of children and elderly patients waiting for help, noting that even bystanders were moved to tears.

In Kankanaey, he lamented:

“Dadin mananangis ay unga iman ay permi nan sakit marikrikna da kaskada danan nanabakes ay enggay mang kamat si anges/yasyas palalo iman ulay da tao ay mandenge sin uga da yan mailuwa-an!”(“The children are crying in immense pain, and even the severely ill are struggling to breathe; it’s so terrible that people listening to them are brought to tears!”)

An hour in the dark

The situation worsened when a brownout hit the emergency ward.

“The whole damn emergency area went dark,” the post read. “It took a terrifying hour before the electricity [came] back to life. An hour! Are you telling me, in a facility that is supposed to be the final stop between life and death, there is no immediate, functional power generator?”

The resident called the incident “criminal negligence,” citing risks to patients in the ICU and those on life support.

The dead x-ray machine

Even after power was restored, chaos persisted. The patient needed an X-ray—but the machine was down.

“There’s no electricity,” staff reportedly said, despite power being back, suggesting a deeper infrastructure issue.

He again cried out in Kankanaey:

“PIGA PAY AY BIYAG MASAYANG IMAN GAPU LANG SINAN KINAKAPOY IMAN DI SERBISYO!”(“How many lives are being wasted just because of the weakness of this service!”)

A call to action

The uploader spared the frontliners, calling nurses and doctors “the true heroes in this mess,” but directed his anger toward officials who “prioritize politics over public welfare.”

“We don’t need your seasonal handout! We need the budget... to be diverted and used to FUND OUR HOSPITALS. Buy the generators! Fix the X-ray machines! Hire the staff!”

He urged citizens to demand accountability and elect leaders who would prioritize strong, functional healthcare systems over temporary welfare programs.

“Invest in the infrastructure so that when a citizen is fighting for their life, they aren’t waiting in the dark!” he said.