Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro – Project Bantay Kalusugan’s (BK) solar-powered Health Center became one of the remaining sources of electricity in Sitio Cabuyao, Brgy Panaytayan after the island was struck by Typhoon Tisoy on December 3, 201,9 putting the province under a state of calamity.

The typhoon destroyed about 3000 houses in its wake according to Provincial Disaster Office Head Vincent Gahol and left the province of Oriental Mindoro partially unelectrified for one-two weeks. Originally having to walk down from the mountains to their municipal proper for roughly two hours to access electricity and have their devices charged, the Mangyan Indigenous People of Sitio Cabuyao have turned to be resilient as they remain to have a source of electricity up in the mountains through Project BK’s solar-powered Health Center.

Equipped with a 1.9 kWh solar power system, the Health Center was able to provide a continuous supply of energy for about two weeks while the municipality experienced blackouts. Some citizens from the municipal proper even braved the two-hour trek to Sitio Cabuyao just to get their devices charged.

“Pagkatapos ng bagyo, two days na walang kuryente sa buong bayan hanggang ngayon, pero sa bundok walang brown out,” a netizen posted on Facebook on December 5, 2020 after hiking to the sitio and getting her devices charged.

[Translation: After the typhoon, it has been two days that the entire municipality remains unelectrified till now, but in the mountains, there is no blackout.]

A Facebook post made by one netizen from Mansalay who went up to the Cabuyao Health Center during the province-wide blackout.

Project BK of local youth organization Keep Hope Alive (KHA) is one of the projects chosen through the Sikat Impact Challenge funded by the Sikat Solar Challenge Foundation since 2018. Projects BK aims to provide basic health care education and services to the Mangyans of Sitio Cabuyao, and just last October 18, 2019, KHA finished the installation of the solar power system in partnership with Captured Energy Green Solution, enabling the electrification of the health center.