• CHERYL G. CRUZ
Dengue cases in Bacolod City increased by 312.2 percent in the first 10 months of this year, the City Health Office said Oct. 28.
Dr. Grace Tan, head of the CHO Environment and Sanitation Division, said Oct. 28 that, from Jan. 1 to Oct. 19, they recorded 1,987 cases, with five deaths, compared to 482 infections with three deaths logged in the same period last year.
The latest fatality came from Barangay Villamonte, Tan said, adding that the previous deaths were logged in barangays Estefania, 16, Felisa, and Sum-ag.
Barangays with high cases of dengue include Taculing with 234, Bata, 166; Estefania, 154; Mansilingan, 152; Villamonte, 130; and Mandalagan, 103, the CHO said.
Health officials have been calling on communities to observe the 4 o’clock habit in the fight against the spread of the dengue infection.
“This is a community concern. The City Health Office alone cannot answer and solve this problem,” CHO head, Dr. Ma. Carmela Gensoli, earlier stressed in appealing to barangays to lead in reviving the 4 o’clock habit in their respective communities.
Gensoli said that reviving this practice will drum up awareness and the importance of clean surroundings to fight the spread of dengue, especially with the rainy season. | CGC
