Facts and Figures: SVFPP Statue

·        The statue faces east, symbolic of facing the sunrise or the dawn of each new day. It is illuminated by floodlights at night.

·        At 50.23 meters high, it is equivalent to 17 stories. The image itself is 42 meters high from the feet. The foundation is 7.5 meters deep.

·        The official Guinness Book of World Record entry for this work is “Tallest Bamboo Sculpture (Supported).”

·        Why choose St. Vincent Ferrer? In a media interview, Ms. Niña Jose-Quiambao revealed, "I was browsing the internet and saw a statue of St. Vincent Ferrer. And I thought it fits well as my husband Cezar is a devotee of Saint Vincent Ferrer. There were many instances of little miracles in his life because of the saint. Also, we got married at the St. Vincent Ferrer Parish Church. Also, I am a devotee of Saint Vincent and Mama Mary."

·        Why choose bamboo? This is the background story according to the project proponents themselves (Mayor CTQ, Ms. Niña Jose-Quiambao, et al.): The original plan to mark the double celebration (400th foundation of SVFP Church and 600th death anniversary of the St. Vincent Ferrer) was to fly 40,000 lanterns just like what Iloilo did when they flew 18,000 lanterns for a celebration. However, the DENR by then issued a document forbidding the release of lanterns in the air due to environmental risks, unless the ritual is performed by the sea. So, being tech-savvy, Ms. Niña researched online and found out that Burma had put up a 31-meter-high bamboo structure, and since Mayor CTQ is in the bamboo industry, why not use bamboo?

·        Why does the saint have wings? Is he really a saint or an angel? Answer: St. Vincent is the only saint depicted with wings. The wings symbolize the saint’s ability to bilocate or to be in two different places at the same time.

·        The record bid is a follow-through on the earlier one made by Bayambang in 2014, the world’s longest barbecue to mark the its 400th foundation day as a town or political unit.

·        The project’s team leader is Architect Jerry Suratos of JQS Builders, aided by Engr. Aaron Villafuerte and Jericho Roble. The project’s surveyor is Engr. Roger Milla.

·        Architect Suratos says the bamboo panels will last for 25 years. Cleaning work would be the only maintenance work needed.

·        Architect Suratos said the St. Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park measures a total of 21,000 square meters (2.1 hectares).

·        SVFPP, he estimates, will be able to accommodate 15,000 people at a time, with a parking lot for 120 cars, a chapel, three event places, and a 5-meter pathway for the Stations of the Cross to accommodate PWDs.

·        No local government money was used in the building of the statue and the SVFPP, whose total budget amounted to P250M, except for security. Management of the site will be under the authority of the local parish church.

·        609 workers built the statue. The welder chosen to work on the neck joints of the statue was a woman named Milagros Talip, the lone female member of the crew, and she was chosen because women are considered to be better than men in doing detailed polishing work.

·        "The project was conceptualized on November 2017. The project plan was finalized on March 2018. We mobilized on April 2018. Mayor Quiambao told me, Jerry I've been working with projects na halos miracle na natapos (completed almost miraculously). I don't know if you can finish this project on time. I assured him we can do it with the help of the people ... and prayers," Suratos was quoted in one media report as saying.

·        Arch. Suratos said he assured the mayor they can finish the project in less than a year if they do it through digitalized image.

·        In the end, it took the team 10 months to finish the statue.

·        It was his 7th time here in the Philippines when Guinness adjudicator Swapnil Dangarikar assessed the St. Vincent Ferrer statue.

·        Independent forester and bamboo expert Aida Lapis was the local independent witness.

·        Two priests blest the statue on its unveiling on April 5, 2019: Bishop Elmer Macalinao and Rev. Fr. Allen O. Romero.

·        "We employed 3D scan and 3D image making use of polygon (tiles). All of the locations of the image or statue are polygons, so we don’t need a sculptor. If a sculptor would do the statue, it would take three to five years,” Suratos was quoted as saying.

·        Building the statue consumed 60 tons of engineered bamboo bought from China and made into 5,000 polygons, 600 tons of steel, and 768.99 cubic meters of 6,000 psi cement. The head alone has about 700 polygons because the saint’s hair is curly.

·        The core’s superstructure reportedly can withstand even a Signal No. 8 eight typhoon.

·        Thankfully, there was zero casualty from start to finish.

·        The statue can be seen even from the neighboring towns of Bautista, Alcala, and Basista.

(Compiled from interviews, press conference, and media reports)