Neighbourhood Saves Foodpanda Delivery Overflow

In what seemed like a happy accident on Wednesday, 25 November 2020, the whole neighbourhood of Our Lady of Remedy, Mabolo, Cebu City in the Philippines responded to an army of pink Foodpanda delivery riders gathered along the street. The situation was essentially an overflow of delivery orders that was the result of a little girl’s lunch order went wrong.

Dann Kayne Suarez, a neighbour who bore witness to the whole scenario, even broadcasted it live to his Facebook feed, followed by updates. According to Suarez, the girl in question attempted to order two boxes of chicken for herself and her grandmother, as she would usually do while her parents were out at work. Her parents were the ones who taught her how to use the app.

Facebook update of the situation by Dann Kayne Suarez.

Unfortunately, because of slow internet connection and the app’s unusual behavior, it repeatedly showed that her order had encountered an error. So, she tried tapping to place the order again, and 40 tries later, she managed to place a successful order – with all the previous ‘failed’ orders going through as well without her knowing.

While a box of chicken fillet, French fries and rice costs only 189 pesos (RM16.02) she had to pay 7,938 pesos (RM673.11) for the total that was delivered. The girl only had enough money to pay for a single order. “The child cried,” said Suarez in an interview with local publication SunStar. “I pity her because she did not know what had happened.”

Foodpanda riders gathered along the narrow street of Our Lady of Remedy. (source: Dann Kayne Suarez, Facebook)

Neighbors can be seen purchasing the extra boxes of chicken. (source: Dann Kayne Suarez, Facebook)

Thankfully, word spread across the neighbourhood and all the girl’s neighbours immediately rushed to her aid by helping to buy boxes of chicken from the Foodpanda riders. While they tried purchasing all of the chicken, some of the riders had already left without receiving payment to deliver their next order. That girl is really blessed to have such kind neighbours. Besides, they all received a meal of delicious chicken too!