Holcim Philippines gives 100 houses to Pablo victims

DAVAO DEL NORTE, May 23 (PIA) - - - “Alas sais sa buntag mi namakwit sa among balay kauban akong bana ug tulo ka anak. Tungod sa kakusog sa ulan, hinay-hinay lang kami namaktas. Ningkalit nalang ug bugso ang kusog kaayo na tubig ug lapok.” (At 6:00 in the morning, I, together with my husband and three children, evacuated our house. Because of the strong winds, we walked slowly. However, there was a sudden rush of water and dirt.)

Nimfa Tumalang tearfully recalled the struggle they encountered last December 4, 2012, when Typhoon Pablo destroyed towns of the province of Compostela Valley.

Tumalang said that when they were hit by the surge of the flood, she lost grab of her children and struggle through the current. She added that she was taken by the flood for about three kilometers away and thought she was the lone survivor of that flood.

“Pagbakod nako, abi nako ug ako nalang ang nabuhi sa among baryo,” she said. (When I resurfaced, I thought I was the only one alive from our village.)

In three days, she was reunited with her second son and husband. Tumalang lost two of her children.

When they visited their village, Tumalang added, they saw nothing that can be distinguished as their house.

“Maong dako kaayo nakong pasalamat sa Holcim nga gitagaan mi nila aning balay,” (That is why I am grateful to Holcim for giving us this house) she said.

Tumalang family is one of the 100 family-victims of Typhoon Pablo that received a house built by Holcim Philippines in the municipality of New Bataan.

The houses were built in a hectare land allocated by the Local Government Unit of New Bataan by Holcim and the families themselves.

“Nagtabang pud mi sa paghimo sa among mga balay,” (We also helped in building our houses) Tumalang said.

Now, she, together with her husband, her son who is finishing his on-the-job training in a company in Davao City for automotive mechanic, and her nieces from her sister who died from the flood, is living in a 26 square-meter house with concrete tiled roofing.

Gov. Arturo Uy of Compostela Valley said that the design of the house was way better than any low-cost housing project.

Further, Dir. Priscilla Razon of the Department of Social Welfare and Development XI said that she was awed by the design and style of the house as well as the program institutionalized by Holcim in building the houses.

“They involve the family-victims and make them feel that they are part of building their own homes,” Dir. Razon said.

Zita Balogo, plant manager of Holcim Philippines, said that the company capacitated the family-victims to build their houses through training them on carpentry, masonry and electrical. She added that the company placed a training center in the area for the said purpose. (PIA 11, Michael L. Uy)