First posted 11:28pm (Mla time) May 31, 2006
By Melvin Gascon
Inquirer

Editor’s Note: Published on Page A15 of the June 1, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
SANTA ANA, CAGAYAN—The grill gets even longer.

Thousands of residents of this coastal town in the northeastern tip of Luzon gathered on Tuesday to join an attempt to set a world record for the longest grill.

Daily house chores in Santa Ana stopped for four hours when residents roasted about 3.5 tons of flying fish, locally known as “burador,” in the attempt to set a Guinness Book of World Record.

The grill’s official length was 4 km.

The record attempt used up 270 sacks of charcoal and 282 liters of gasoline-kerosene mixture to roast fresh flying fish, according to Danilo Rugrug, chair of the event.

The grill also used 341 pieces of 8 feet by 4 feet galvanized iron sheets and about 10,000 board feet (120 trees) of coconut lumber that were cut and used as grill stands.

Laid out along the national highway here, the record-setting grill started from Palawig Bridge and spanned the three villages of Palawig, Centro and Diora Zinungan.
The grill’s length was officially measured by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Carol Robertson, a linguistics student who is in the country for a four-month study, was chosen as a witness to the record attempt.

Robertson affirmed the official length after she measured the grill with a global positioning system (GPS) device.

Mayor Norberto Victor Rodriguez said what was more important than setting a world record was the people’s show of unity and cooperation.

The town government spent about P600,000 for the attempt, including P160,000 for the fish that were bought from local fishermen. With a report from Villamor Visaya Jr., PDI Northern Luzon Bureau.