Call Center Agent: Faced with Father and Daughter DILEMMA

source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/breaking-news/2012/08/31/79-quake-hits-eastern-samar-240302

The evening of Friday, August 31st 2012 - the whole Philippines was caught off guard with a shocking news.The Eastern side of the country was literally being  rocked with a magnitude 7.7 earthquake. I was still asleep then I woke up because the house that I lived in here in Cebu was dancing. I thought somebody grabbed hold of it and decided to toss it back and forth.

Yes, I am a call center agent here in Cebu. I am here to work. Just like my colleagues I'm  from a different island of the country. Cebu has always been a place of calm. Hard hitting typhoons never had that chance to hit this city hard - as far as I can remember. People consider themselves lucky unlike the ones living in Manila wherein it's almost automatic that it would flood every time it rains. Maybe this is the reason why Cebuanos are not used to calamities. I can still remember a couple of months ago when people here were in panic because of an earth quake. This relax mode in the city, made me calm and confident that nothing bad would happen here. No typhoons, floods, quake, etc would damage or harm Cebu.

Past eight in the evening, August 31st. It was an event that changed me. I woke up because of the loud noise that I heard outside my room. My housemates were in a panic mode. I realized that the whole house was being rocked. It was obvious that we were experiencing an earth quake. I went out of the door. And when everything seemed to settle, I went back. Instinctively, I checked the Internet for a news. Then I saw an update from my friend in Facebook. She placed in her status that Eastern Samar was hit with a 7.7 earth quake. Some of her friends were already making some comments. And it hit me that me that my daughter is in Borongan Eastern Samar. I started to ask for some updates. I tried to call. I was not getting through. I used both of my phone services but I was not getting anything. Somebody posted that they were not able to do so on their end. The cellphone signal was down in our place. Facebook was still on, so I kept asking for updates. Then, even Facebook went out because the power in our town shut off. I swear I wanted to pound the heads of the owners of Globe, Smart and the manager of ESAMELCO (our power provider). I did not know what to do. At the same time, I remembered that I have agents already on duty. Our office was located on the 15th floor of a building near Ayala Cebu. A team lead updated me that they were sent down. Now, I was confused on who to attend to first, my agents or my daughter. I waited for an update in Facebook. Knowing that our town in Samar is facing the Pacific Ocean, I was restless! The thought of a tsunami after a strong quake bothered me so much. The house where my daughter lives is near the coastline. Switch thought. Everything seemed to be fine in the office. However, no update does not mean that everything is fine. So I went to the shower, put on a shirt and went to the office. 

In the call center. The whole production floor did not look normal. I know it was hard for the agents. Being located in the 15th floor while the ground moves is never a good experience - I think! Well, everyone seemed calm except me. I never heard an update. When I left the house I read that there was a tsunami warning raised for Eastern Samar. So I was in a dilemma on whether to be a Manager and take care of my agents or to be a father and worry about my child. 

The President of the company approached me. He saw that I was not in a tranquil state. And just like a father he patted my back and said "a tsunami, normally comes after an hour or so". I realized that he was right. I was able to focus. Now, I am manager. Now I can be productive. I received a text later that my daughter was fine. Friday was one hell of a production day!