Calapan villagers sandbag river to prevent floods

CALAPAN CITY—Instead of partying this Christmas, about 120 residents of Barangay Gutad here, led by their officials, decided to use their time to sandbag the portion of Bucayao-Panggalaan River that has threatened to overflow and create a new waterway leading to the populated area in the village.

City Councilor Edel Ilano, who took part in the activity, said the volunteers have been sandbagging daily since Monday “like an outing in the field,” to make the task easier.

Positioned along a 100-meter stretch between Sitio Bagong Pook of Gutad and Sitio B3 of Barangay Camansihan, the sandbags, using palay sacks, were 1 meter high and between 1.5 and 2.5 meters wide, Ilano said.

The villagers, who largely depend on their vegetable and rice fields, have been losing incomes because of the unusually heavy rains and floods experienced over the last three months, said Gutad Barangay Captain Francisco Tinio.

“The villagers are united, their officials utilized the calamity funds, and started sandbagging on Dec. 19.  After Tropical Storm  ‘Sendong’ devastated lives in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, they are more convinced they are doing the right thing,” said Ilano.

More than 2,500 sandbags have so far been put in place, he added.

“After New Year, we target to sandbag another 100 meters stretch, and would need 5,000 palay sacks,” he said.

He said Mayor Paulino Salvador “Doy” Leachon has programmed  in next year’s budget the cost of re-channeling the river’s section in Sitio Bagong Pook, as long-term solution.

In 2005, Leachon, then the city administrator, mobilized 35,000 volunteers to make sandbags and construct a sand dike along the river banks, after the city was hit by severe flooding.

More than half a million bags were produced and almost a kilometer of sand dike was constructed.

This initiative has brought Leachon to Asia Society’s sixth annual Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit in New Delhi, India, from Nov. 18 to 20 said Abigail Pacquing, the city’s media coordinator.

“Not only did it save the city from floodwaters, but it also saved P62-million worth of reconstruction, which only took 10 days of rebuilding instead of two years,” she said.