Durham father thankful son is safe after Philippines earthquake
Eddie Blount sat at this desk for about five hours Tuesday, waiting to hear if his son had been hurt in the earthquake that hit the Philippines. The Durham father began searching online and emailing his son, hoping to hear that he was safe.
Posted — Updated“I started looking around, trying to find out how bad the damage was. It said there had been about 100 people killed,” Blount said.
His son, Davis Blount, has been serving as a missionary in Cebu for the past 14 months with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Around 2 p.m. Tuesday, Eddie Blount finally found a message from the church, saying that the earthquake hadn’t harmed any of their missionaries.
“I kind of assumed he was probably OK, but you still worry and wonder,” Eddie Blount said.
Tuesday’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake killed at least 144 people and injured nearly 300 others. Rescuers were still searching for survivors in the piles of rubble Wednesday.
Davis Blount told his father he went outside and saw grass and concrete in big waves.
Despite the scare, Eddie Blount says he’s still thankful for his son’s experience. He is allowed to receive emails once a week from his son and talk with him twice a year. David Blount is expected to return home next summer.
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