'War Zone ER,' dokumentaryo ni Sandra Aguinaldo ngayong Sabado sa I-Witness

“WAR ZONE ER”
Dokumentaryo ni Sandra Aguinaldo
September 30, 2017

The sound of gunfire is relentless.  In the morning, air raids drop bombs a few blocks away.

Inside the main battle area in Marawi, the sound of a tank rushing towards a makeshift clinic rouses everyone into action. In a matter of seconds, a wounded soldier is unloaded and on an examination table attended to by a surgeon, an anesthesiologist, an internist and a team of nurses. This is a composite team by the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police.

Emergency care facilities near the battleground, no matter how crude, are life-saving tools that have redefined warfare.  Combat casualties with gunshot wounds to blast injuries, benefit greatly from the proximity of a team of medical specialists on-hand to treat and give immediate care until they reach a tertiary hospital.  Often, a 10-minute window is all they have to ensure survival, and this is what aid stations offer to the wounded. It buys them time.

But there is also a casualty collecting point— a smaller facility closer to the battleground that can be reached in under 3 minutes. Inside the bullet-ridden structure that used to be someone’s home, is a makeshift operating table covered in tarpaulin.  Outside, what used to be a garage, serves as the emergency room. Bloody handprints on the wall and blood stains on the carpet tell of stories of those fallen soldiers who became casualties of the war.  This clinic is manned by a surgeon, Major Caesar Candelaria, who joined the troops as a Scout Ranger after being a civilian doctor for 10 years. Despite accepting the realities of war, he admits, it’s tough being a combat doctor because your patients are sometimes your friends.

This Saturday on I-Witness, Sandra Aguinaldo enters Marawi’s battle zone again, to tell the stories of those tasked to save the lives of the wounded on “War Zone ER”, after Celebrity Bluff on GMA.

Filipino version:

Walang humpay ang putukan.  Sa umaga, dumadangudong ang malakas ng pagsabog ng mga hinuhulog na bomba, ilang kanto lang ang layo.

Sa loob ng main battle area sa Marawi, ang tunog ng rumaragasang tangke patungo sa isang pansamantalang clinic ang hudyat para dali-daling kumilos ang mga medical personnel na naka antabay para sa mga nasugatan. Sa loob lamang ng ilang segundo, naibababa na ang pasyente at   kaharap na ng isang surgeon, anesthesiologist, internist at mga nurse.  Grupo ito ng pinagsanib na mga tauhan mula sa Armed Forces of the Philippines at Philippine National Police.

Ang mga pasilidad para sa agarang lunas na malapit sa lugar ng bakbakan, kahit pa pansamantala   lang, ay malaki ang nagagawa para mailigtas ang buhay ng sugatan. Nabibigyan nila ng tulong ang sundalong tinamaan ng bala o bomba para umabot ng buhay sa pinakamalapit na ospital. May mga pagkakataong mayroon lamang silang 10 minuto para mailigtasa ang buhay ng pasyente.

Pero mayroon ring casualty collecting point—mas maliit pero mas malapit na pasilidad sa lugar ng bakbakan. Maaari itong maabot sa loob ng 3 minuto. Tadtad ng bala ang labas ng dating bahay. Ang  garahe nito ang nagsisilbing emergency room. Sa loob, may isang operating table na gawa sa kahoy.  Isang bakas ng duguang kamay sa pader at natuyong dugo sa carpet ay nagsisilbing palatandaan ng mga sakripisyo ng mga sugatang sundalong dumaan dito. Isang surgeon ang nagpapatakbo ng clinic na ito. Si Major Caesar Candelaria ay naging sibilyang duktor ng sampung taon bago pumasok bilang isang Scout Ranger. Tanggap man niya ang realidad ng giyera, inaamin niyang, hindi madali maging isang combat doctor dahil minsan ang pasyente ay isang kaibigan.

Ngayong Sabado sa I-Witness, papasuking muli ni Sandra Aguinaldo ang Marawi para ilahad ang kuwento ng mga taong naatasang iligtas ang buhay ng mga sugatan sa “War Zone ER”, pagkatapos ng Celebrity Bluff sa GMA.