• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Sangguniang Panlungsod has asked the Department of Education Division of Bacolod to ensure safety precautions against heatstroke and other ill-effects of the hot weather on students and faculty members of primary and secondary schools in the city.
Councilor Claudio Jesus “Kalaw” Puentevella, chairperson of the SP Committee on Health and Sanitation, said in the resolution approved Feb. 28 that due to the El Niño persistence, “it is expected that rising heat and temperature is inevitable, which can cause heatstroke”, thus the request.
Strong El Niño will likely persist until May, as per the weather bureau, so the DepEd Division of Bacolod is requested “to provide adequate precautions to ensure the safety of students and faculty against the effects of high temperatures and extreme heat,” he added.
Puentevella, meanwhile, asked the City Health Office to strengthen its campaign against dengue prevention in Bacolod.
As per the CHO Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit, there were 60 recorded cases of dengue fever since the start of this year, with seven new infections logged during the Feb. 4-10 monitoring week, he said.
He also noted that barangays with highest dengue cases include Taculing with 15, and four each in barangays Tangub, Mansilingan, and Cabug. | CGC
