EDITORIAL — No need for finger-pointing. Accidents are what they are

That the explosion that ripped apart a laundry shop in Mandaue City and killed two people and injured a dozen others was a tragic accident is without argument. That it could have been any less tragic if it had the proper permits and safety standards is, however, open to question.

This has to be made clear because, like the aftermath of all tragedies in this country, the government agencies that have been placed on the spot, rightly or wrongly, now seem to be clawing over one another in trying to find anything or anyone to blame.

It is as if there is always a consuming need to find fault, that an accident cannot happen unless somebody fell asleep or had chosen to cut corners, in the process missing the whole point that an accident could simply be just what it is - an unforeseen tragic incident.

Some are saying the laundry shop did not have the proper business permits while others are saying it did not have the proper safety standards in place. And the thing about it is that they could all be right.

But having proper business permits and the proper safety standards offer no guarantees against accidents. In fact, some of the worst accidents have happened in some of the most secure places on earth.

So let us not split hairs over the lack of permits or safety standards. Not that they are not important. They are in fact very important. But they mean nothing after the fact. What needs to be done under the circumstances is to learn lessons, not point fingers.

For instance, since the matter of safety has repeatedly been invoked in the aftermath of this tragic incident, is the government really prepared to conduct honest-to-goodness safety seminars or will it simply remain content with performing the ministerial job of issuing permits?

On the other hand, not all the safety measures in the world can prevent accidents. They can only minimize their impact. So let us all stop this finger-pointing and consider ourselves lucky that things were not actually worse. Go pour yourself a healthy drink.