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MANILA – As Filipinos flock to cemeteries to commemorate their departed beloved, emergency systems shall be on standby in all government hospitals, as the Department of Health (DOH) raises the “White Alert” over the long weekend.
These government hospitals are also stocked with essential medicines and supplies, ready to be provided on short notice.
DOH spokesperson Eric Tayag said there will also be first aid stations provided by local government units and civil organizations at the cemeteries.
Tayag said the most common case they had to handle over the years was dehydration, “both from heat stroke and from diarrhea because of contaminated food, water, including ice, because you don’t know where they got the water to produce the ice, so we have to be very careful.”
Tayag meanwhile reminded children less than 5 years old, pregnant women, and older persons to “take care how they visit cemeteries.”
“If they are in a condition that most likely will give risks to their health, they should stay at home; otherwise, they should take precautions,” he said.
The elderly, for example, should bring with them their maintenance medication if they have high blood pressure, and should also have their blood pressure taken before heading out.
“We expect that it’s going to be hot, so there’s the danger of heat strokes. There will be fainting, dizziness. So they have to carry with them bottled water, just to be safe,” he added.
Tayag said they have also issued alerts for food safety, but reiterated families who will prepare their own food or buy from vendors to “just make sure hot food remains hot and cold food remains cold.”
“Just be careful with what you eat; always wash your hands; and for cemeteries that were not cleaned enough, you have to take care of bites from mosquitoes because we are on alert too for diseases carried by mosquitoes,” he said.
He also advised visitors to bring their umbrellas to protect them from the rain or the heat, and be wary of roaming animals.
“Please watch out for snakes. We have reported in the past snake bites and dog bites. We hope managers of cemeteries have kept these animals from roaming around. This is for visiting the dead and this is for people,” he said. (ABS-CBN News)
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