BACOLOD City – Health authorities in Negros Occidental have recorded 13 dengue-related deaths from January 4 to Sept. 19, even as overall cases across the province declined by more than 34 percent compared to 2025.
Data from the Negros Occidental Provincial Health Office (PHO) showed 3,146 dengue cases as of Morbidity Week 37, down by 34.09 percent or 1,627 cases from the 4,773 cases logged during the same period last year.
All 31 local government units in the province, excluding Bacolod City, recorded suspected dengue cases.
La Carlota City posted the highest number of cases at 566, followed by Bago City with 236, Silay City (233), Cauayan (182), Talisay City (166), San Carlos City (152), Sagay City (140), Kabankalan City (122), Cadiz City (104), and Manapla (74).
Cadiz City recorded the highest number of dengue-related deaths, with three fatalities.
In Bacolod City, which is monitored separately from the province, the City Health Office (CHO) listed five dengue-related deaths despite a 15.5-percent decline in cases.
Bacolod logged 666 cases as of Morbidity Week 36, covering Sept. 6 to 12, down from 788 cases during the same period in 2025.
CHO assistant department head Dr. Grace Tan warned residents against complacency, emphasizing that dengue remains a serious threat despite falling numbers.
She urged residents to eliminate potential mosquito breeding sites by observing the “4Ts” strategy: Taob, Taktak, Tuyo, and Takip.
Tan also encouraged residents to participate in the city’s daily 4 o’clock habit, a community cleanup initiative aimed at removing areas where mosquitoes can breed.
The CHO advised the public to seek immediate medical consultation upon noticing symptoms such as sudden high fever lasting two to seven days, severe headache, muscle and joint pain, pain behind the eyes, weakness, and skin rashes.
Residents were also warned to watch for severe dengue indicators, including persistent abdominal pain, unusual bleeding, coffee-colored vomiting, dark-colored stools, and breathing difficulties./PN
