Local health authorities warned the public on the projected increase in dengue fever cases in the city following the onslaught of the early rains that may lead to the presence of clear and stagnant water in their backyard and neighborhood.
Engr. Charles Bryan Carame, head of the City Health Services office (CHSO) sanitation division, disclosed there was already a recorded increase in dengue fever cases in the city for January 2023 alone where there were some 53 cases compared to the 47 reported cases in January 2022.
He added that clustering of cases have been recorded in barangays Bakakeng Central, Irisan, Loakan Proper and Asin because of the reported dense population in the said communities.
Further, Carame claimed that based on the data of reported dengue fever cases in the city, the presence of dengue infection is in the homes while dengue cases reported in schools are not that significant despite the resumption of face-to-face classes.
He pointed out that schools are considered to be safe from dengue infection but the problem lies on the residences where the reported dengue cases come from, thus, the need for the public to always go back to the old habit of clearing their compounds of containers that have clear and stagnant water as these are the breeding ground of dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
Earlier, the city government procured a machine that produces hypochlorous acid which is used for disinfection which could be availed for free by the barangays for possible distribution to the residences that need disinfection because of dengue fever cases.
Last year, the personnel of the CHSO and City Disaster Risk Reduction and management Office trained volunteers from the barangays on how to conduct the disinfection of residences that is why households could request their respective barangays to assist them in the disinfection of their homes when necessary to prevent the rapid spread of the deadly virus in their communities.