BEFORE AND AFTER: Photos show the breathtaking view of Siargao island’s famous bent palm tree at the Maasin River, which collapsed on Wednesday, February 22, 2023. Photos courtesy of Janos Leo Gorgolon Andanar and Eddie Tesiorna Coñado/Facebook
Locals and tourists in Siargao dealt a devastating blow when the island’s famous bent palm tree, which served as a popular tourist destination for decades, finally collapsed.
The island’s distinctively bent palm tree has become a treasured playground for visitors who enjoy swinging on a rope perched on its trunk and extending over the emerald waters of the Maasin Enchanted River in Pilar town.
“The famous leaning coconut of Maasin River is now gone. Wayay gajud forever (Nothing really lasts forever),” photographer Janos Leo Gorgolon Andanar captioned his post on Wednesday, Feb. 22, as he shared a photo of the leaning palm tree, which he took back in 2018.
“Good thing may na ako daan picture nan Maasin river adisir pa ini nu sikat (Good thing I took a picture of the Maasin River before it became famous),” he added.
Andanar, a Department of Health (DOH) representative on the island, included in his post a photo taken by Eddie Tesiorna Coñado, a local tour guide in Maasin, showing the exact location where the tree tumbled down into the river.
In a phone interview, Coñado told the Inquirer.net that the tree fell around 4 a.m. on Wednesday: “‘Yung puno, ung mga gamot niya [na sumusuporta sa kanya, parang nawalan na ng bisa dahil sa tubig mula sa river] at nawalan na ng lupa sa loob. [Tapos] ung tali, naputol lang tapos nagsimula nang malaglag [yung puno].”
(The tree’s supporting medicines may have lost its effectiveness due to the river’s water and the soil inside has gone. The rope was then severed and the tree began to topple.)
‘This is not the end’
Since the tree had been an icon of the island for many years, the local government unit of Pilar took to social media to pay tribute to it, as the tree has been a source of livelihood for the community and helped boost tourism activities in Siargao until it reached its end.
“The local government unit of Pilar is thankful for the resources given by the Almighty and the effort exerted by the barangay officials and community to preserve the “Coconut Bent Tree” that was discovered by tourists and gave livelihood to the community,” the Pilar Tourism Culture & Arts wrote on its Facebook page.
Meanwhile, a social media user behind the Facebook account “Litik Maasin River – Siargao” penned a heartfelt message to express gratitude for the fallen tree.
“[In] reality, everything has a limit. Thank you for the times you were with us—for helping each of us. Because of you, we’re here; because of you, people here have a livelihood. Thank you very much for your help,” he wrote.
“We will try to continue whatever you started. We will miss you so much, coconut bended tree,” he went on to say.
Siargao’s tourism recovery
In October 2022, Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco said in a statement during the opening ceremony of the 26th Siargao International Surfing Cup that the Department of Tourism (DOT) has identified Siargao as one of its prioritized places for tourism development after it was ravaged by Typhoon Odette (international name: Rai) in December 2021.
During Odette’s onslaught, the Sugba Lagoon, which was once Siargao’s breathtaking hidden paradise filled with lush and abundant tropical rainforests, as well as the iconic Cloud 9 boardwalk, had been severely decimated by the typhoon.
More than a year after Odette ravaged the island, Siargao folks began to rebuild their lives, with the island slowly recovering from the tragedy owing to its tourism industry.