ER power outages, long queues lamented

BAGUIO CITY — A public hospital’s emergency room in Baguio City was plunged into darkness during a recent power outage, reportedly leaving patients, including an accident victim, waiting in the dark and sparking public outrage over alleged government neglect.

The incident was detailed in a viral social media post by a resident who had rushed a relative to the facility and witnessed what they called a “systemic failure” of the healthcare system. The anonymous poster described the experience as an “awakening” to officials’ alleged true valuation of citizens’ lives.

The ordeal began with a bureaucratic hurdle: the poster was instructed to join a queue upon arrival, despite the patient needing immediate attention.

“You have to queue, like you’re waiting for a concert ticket, while your loved one is in pain,” the resident wrote, expressing outrage at the lack of priority for emergency cases.

The situation escalated dramatically when the entire emergency area went dark due to a brownout reported by the local electric cooperative.

“The whole damn emergency area went dark,” the account read. “It took an 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 power failure instantly raised alarming questions about patient safety, particularly for those in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and on life support. The resident labeled the failure to provide immediate backup power in a critical care setting as “criminal negligence.”

Even after power was restored, the systemic breakdown continued. The poster was informed by “tired, overwhelmed staff” that there would be a delay of hours for a basic X-ray.