THE village of Ilang is just by the outskirts of the city. It consists of 129 families making their community quite full to the brim.
These families live in houses on stilts, eight feet above the sea. And the only thing that connects these houses together are not cemented pavements but scraps of wood in various shapes and sizes that form a make-shift bridge. The people in the village walk on these bridges every day.
If we’re used to the city’s sidewalks underneath our shoes protecting our feet, their bare feet are familiar with the feel of damp wood just a few feet wide creaking under them. Despite this, they cross these bridges in order to go out and make a living.
These make shift bridges are made out of wood and whatever the people can find to hold them together like rope, rubber, nails, etc. Majority of these do not have railings.
“Kung dili ka sanay mulakaw diri, delikado jud. (If you’re not used to walking around here, it’s really dangerous),” Ismael Sailabi, a resident, said.
The bridges aren’t built in a particular way or fashion, either. The materials used are different, the wood sizes vary in type, shape, size and thickness.
The routes of the bridges aren’t the same either, it can take sudden turns, making it even more dangerous if the material suddenly changes, like the wood in the next step would become slightly smaller or thinner than the step before it.
Indeed, if you’re not a local of the community, watching your step may be the last thing you do before falling into the water below.
When the community members were asked if there was any budget to fix or even simply stabilize the bridges, Sailabi said that there was a said P150,000 allotment but he does not know how or when the bridges would be fixed. The bridges are potential hazards for the people.
In an interview with Engineer Chester Manon-og, he admits that the bridges are not safe. The foundations are not strong, the materials used are not durable, and the bridges are not engineered properly, many portions are "long-span" where the support are only on both ends of a plank as long as 12 feet.
“Kailangan na siya ug proper engineering design tungod sa load na dapat kayanon sa tulay. (It needs proper engineering design for the load that it carries),” Engr. Manon-og said.
There is also the seawater to consider. Regular dousing with seawater can weaken a wooden plank. Some planks are also not nailed down enough and there are spaces in between, cracks or gaps, waiting to trip someone.
Most of all, there are no handrails. It's a long balancing act all throughout, on planks barely a foot wide. It becomes more difficult to navigate at night.
“Ang pinakaprobable na mahitabo kay mu-collapse jud ang bridge. More so kay dili na tan-aw ang span pati ang load ani. Any time pwede mag collapse, ug mag deteriorate tungod sa kusog na ulan, current ug sa kadaghan sa tao na naga lakaw-lakaw dira (The bridge can collapse because the span and the load have not been considered in its construction. It can also deteriorate because of exposure to heavy rain, current, and the large number of people walking on the bridges),” Engineer Manon-og said.
Couple Eleno and Soriah Isnani said that with 11 people in their house, two of whom are babies just over a year old and three are toddlers, they also fear for the safety of their children.
“Kanang anak namo, kanang ga kamang-kamang, nahulog man na ganina lang buntag (Our child, the one that’s crawling, fell from the bridge just this morning),” Eleno shared.
The bridge is indeed dangerous and the water below is dirty, with garbage floating, brought in by the current from all over. The residents said they as a community dispose of their garbage properly, but still, garbage from as far as Panabo float in and settle underneath their houses on stilts. Soriah also said the children usually get fevers and “piang,” or bone fractures or sprains.
“Bantayan ra jud ni sila ug maayo. Mahadlok ko kung mahulog sila, pero naa man pud ko sa laot maningkamot para pud sa ila (We just have to watch them all the time. I'm afraid for them, but I have to go out to fish for all of us),” Eleno added.
The locals are used to their children falling into the polluted water, they are used to walking on these damp wooden bridges barefoot. They are used to it, but they are somewhat unaware that what they are used to, also threatens their health.
“They may be at risk of attaining coliform bacteria. It is a category of microorganisms that causes multiple gastrointestinal symptoms,” Dr. Rojim Sorrosa, a medical doctor who specializes in hospice care, said.
Some disorders that the gastrointestinal tracts can be Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome (CVS), where a child can have periods of intense vomiting. There is also a risk of Infant Dyschezia, wherein an infant takes 10 minutes of straining and crying before releasing soft stools. There are also diseases like dyspepsia, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Diarrhea.
Dr. Sorrosa adds that any age group is susceptible to this type of bacteria but the children are most vulnerable, and that the presence of coliform bacteria indicates sewage contamination, and is a public health concern. Then there is the danger of Clostridium tetani, an ubiquitous or widespread bacteria which causes tetanus, from the exposed nails on the bridges. “Acquiring punctured wounds is the usual mode of entry,” Dr. Sorrosa said.
Ilang village has 17 puroks within it. According to its village profile from City Planning, in the 2015 census, there are 24,947 individuals living in Ilang. It has one health center, 10 village health officers, and three village nutrition scholars.
Also, according to Engineer Minerva Taculin from the City Engineer’s Office, there was only one project for Ilang village this year, a drainage project.
Village official Alvin Besinan said they can only provide limited projects for each purok given their limited budget as well.
“Matag kalye na siya gina budget-an na sa barangay, gina puli puli lang namo ba (Each street is given a budget by the village. We rotate the distribution),” Besinan said.
There are areas where there are concrete bridges connecting the houses on stilts, but as more and more informal settlers arrive, the makeshift bridges become the norm.
Besinan said the P150,000 budget for maintenance of village roads and bridges is too small to provide for all. The best will always be through bayanihan, where residents themselves contribute both for labor and materials.
“This is the face of poverty,” Dr. Gemima Valderrama, a journalism professor of the Ateneo de Davao University, said.
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Mari–Faye D. Libang is a student of Ateneo de Davao University.