ILOILO City – The City Health Office (CHO) warned that dengue cases may increase this dry season.
“During this time of El Niño, people normally store water,” said City Health Officer Dr. Bernard Caspe.
Stored water, when not covered properly, can serve as breeding sites for the dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
Caspe cited studies showing that the lifespan of mosquitoes is becoming shorter during the hot season. They mature faster, he added.
A report from the Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit of the Department of Health-Center for Health Development in Region 6 showed that from Jan. 1 to March 9, a total of 347 dengue cases with three deaths were recorded in the city.
This is higher compared to 72 cases with no deaths in the same period last year.
The CHO already wrote public and private schools in the city to conduct misting to prevent the spread of the viral disease.
Last week, the CHO requested the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to require all barangays in the city to acquire misting machines and larvicide.
The larvicide is placed in stagnant water where mosquitoes lay their eggs. The misting machine, on the other hand, is filled with insecticide that kills adult mosquitoes.
Barangay watchmen are also being trained on how to properly mix chemicals used during the misting.
The effect of misting could last from two weeks to a month, depending on the weather.
DILG city director Atty. Ferdinand Panes ordered barangay captains to include in their Local Disaster Risk Reduction Plan activities and projects that would help address the dengue problem. (With PNA/PN)
