BARANGAY LIÑAGAN, in Maasin Iloilo is no stranger to being affected by flood. It was the constant fear of residents that triggered them to push the construction of a creek wall.

When the Liñagan Creek overflows, it affects the residents, rice fields and farms animals. Yet, these are things of the past now.

Barangay Captain Erlina Senina said residents fear no more when the rain comes after the 180 linear meters long creek wall was completed. “Kon mag-uran subong wala na gabaha (When it rains, it does not flood anymore).” 

Liñagan is one of the major producers of sugarcane and corn in the province of Iloilo. In previous years, agricultural products were soiled in water, thus it affects the farmers’ income.

It was also the foresight of the residents that protected them from experiencing the full impact of Typhoon Yolanda after their worst experience from Typhoon Frank in 2008.

The unceasing fear of being flooded that spurred the construction of the creek wall in 2008 and 2011 when they were given the opportunity to address the most pressing needs of their community through Kalahi-CIDSS, one of the three main poverty alleviation program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

In 2008, portion of the community was not yet covered with the creek wall. Thus, they again prioritized for funding the construction of the creek wall to cover the entire community where waters from Liñagan Creek passes through, making it less prone to flooding.

 “Rako gid to problema namon sang una kay ang mga pamalay nga ginabaha ga-evacuate man lang sa barangay hall diri kanamon, te paano bi kay ginabaha man ang barangay hall. Kabudlay gid (We had lots of problem before since we evacuate the affected households at the barangay hall.  How can we evacuate them when the barangay hall is also flooded),” she said.

Community volunteer, Dionesio Magcanam said they love the creek wall project because it protected them from deluge. “Amo na wara man kami ga duwa-duwa magkid-an kang mga guba (We never hesitated to fix what is broken in the creek wall).”

Magcanam, who chairs the Operation and Maintenance group, said the barangay allotted P10,000 for the maintenance of the creek wall project. Everything is temporary; wear and tear cannot be avoided.

The residents would usually fill in the gaps between the piled rocks with cement and clear the waterways of the debris such as branches of the trees. While residents also plant flowering plants on the edge of the wall as their beautification effort.

Those were the efforts of the community to show ownership of their project by initiating different means to protect and maintain it. They became a resilient community.

With the creek wall, there are no more flooded areas or damaged crops and flooded homes. #