Wife of Pinoy medical staff in Haiti turns to Facebook for comfort

Unable to call her husband who works in earthquake-stricken Haiti, Marge Magsino turned to the second best "communication line" she could use just to quell her uneasiness: social networking site Facebook. When a powerful magnitude-7 earthquake hit the Caribbean nation Tuesday, all communication lines reportedly went down, making futile Marge's attempts to reach his husband, Apolonio "Jun" Magsino, who has been working for two years for the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Facing her computer, Marge typed in a message as though making a desperate call for help. "Please pray for everybody in Haiti, which was struck by a 7.0 earthquake this morning," she wrote. Soon after, messages from friends began pouring in, with one of them assuring Marge, "I'm sure kuya (brother) Jun is OK." Elmer Cato, press Officer of the Philippine mission to the United Nations, earlier said the MINUSTAH headquarters was no match for the strong quake and collapsed. But Marge knew for certain her husband had already gone home when the earthquake rocked the island at 4:53 p.m. on Tuesday (5:53 a.m. Wednesday in Manila). Still, she could never be assured of her husband's safety. The earthquake, the strongest to hit the nation in two centuries, literally flattened the capital - tearing down cathedrals, hospitals, schools, and prison buildings. But some nine hours after making her first post about the earthquake, the best news she could receive that time finally arrived. Her husband called to tell her he was unscathed by the earthquake. Once again, Marge rushed to the computer to announce the good news: "Just talked to Jun. He's very much okay. Thank God!" "Para pong malaking malaking tinik na nabunot sa dibdib ko. Parang ngayon lang ako nakahinga nang malalim (It's like a huge thorn was pulled out of my chest. It's only now that I can breathe freely)," Marge told GMA News later that night. However, Marge admitted that her husband still had to face the horror laid before him and the Haitians: the thousands of bodies either scattered or stuck in the rubble. Being a medical officer, Jun had to face the more heart-crushing task of attending to the thousands more left injured. "Right now kakarating lang niya sa clinic nila at sobrang daming nag-aantay na pasyente (Right now he had just arrived at the clinic and there were so many patients waiting to be treated)," Marge said. - Carmela Lapeña/MDM/LBG, GMANews.TV