Cagayan's 'miracle spring' lures devotees

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines – Hundreds of devotees are expected to flock to Piat town in Cagayan this Holy Week to visit a spring said to have miraculous water.

Devotees have reportedly started arriving since Monday to Piat town whose spring or ubbog ti biag is believed to have healing powers.

Piat, one of Cagayan’s remote southwestern towns, is about three hours by land from Tuguegarao City, the capital.

The town is also the home of the Shrine of Our Lady of Piat, making it one of the region’s major pilgrimage sites.

The spring in Barangay Sto. Domingo, a short distance from the shrine, was reportedly discovered by overseas worker Lorelle Dorio of Camalaniugan town in 1999.

Although not officially connected to the Shrine of Our Lady of Piat, the spring has become a popular destination among Catholic devotees.

Dorio, who had worked as a domestic helper in Cyprus since 1988, reportedly returned home after hearing voices telling her to do so to embark on a mission.

Upon her arrival, Dorio reportedly had a vision of the Virgin Mary, who supposedly told her to be ready for a mission and look for the spring.

Talk had it that the healing powers of the spring’s water were discovered after a child ill with meningitis was cured. Since then, thousands of devotees have flocked to the site, hoping for similar miracles.

The present caretaker of the site, Luz Domingo, had reportedly vouched, too, for the spring’s healing powers, saying her heart enlargement was cured when she drank the water.

Another pilgrimage site in Cagayan Valley during the Lenten season is Bangan Hill in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya.

Dubbed as the province’s Mt. Calvary, the hill overlooks the expanse of the Bayombong capital. During the Holy Week, devotees go there to witness a reenactment of the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Dariok Hill in Barangay Balintocatoc in Santiago City, Isabela is a favored site for meditation. Mayor Amelita Navarro transformed it into one of the region’s religious sites in 2001.

Dariok Hill has more than 80 religious statues, depicting the Last Supper up to Christ’s resurrection and ascension into heaven.

Another religious site is Iguig Hill in Cagayan, where huge depictions of the Stations of the Cross can be found.