VICTIMS of the fire that recently hit sitio San Antonio in barangay Kamagayan, Cebu City have benefited from the free potable water provided by the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD).
A communal faucet was installed a day after the blaze near the chapel of the area.
Most of the victims are temporarily staying in a vacant space in front of the chapel.
As part of its corporate social responsibility, MCWD provides free water to victims of big fires within its franchise area for drinking, cooking and washing.
Miriam Perocho, 50, a fire victim and a housewife, said the free water from MCWD is a big help for all of the victims.
“Mapasalamaton gyud kaayo mi sa libreng tubig. Dako kaayo ug gikatabang namong tanan. Kun wala pa ang tubig sa MCWD, samot kalisud kay wa pay balay, wa pa gyud tubig (We are very thankful for the free water. This will help us a lot. If not because of MCWD, life would have been so hard because aside from losing our house, we also lose water),” Perocho said.
Perocho has been living in the area with her partner, Ramon Abarre, for more than 20 years already. They have a son who is in Grade 8 at the Abellana National High School.
Perocho’s house with a small sari-sari store was among the 20 houses that were reduced to ashes during the fire, leaving at least 27 families homeless.
Jimmy Ann Dolino, 17, a student, also expressed her gratitude for the free potable water. “Way kaso ug way kuryente basta naa lay tubig,” she said.
MCWD is also the major source of water in putting out fires in Cebu since 1912.