Thursday, December 20, 2007 Dengue claims 3 more lives in just 9 days
THREE more people died of dengue fever in Cebu City in just nine days, with 101 more residents falling ill because of the virus.
Despite the continuous increase in the number of cases, the Cebu City Dengue Task Force decided not to heed the mayor’s suggestion of pouring used oil into a suspected breeding site of dengue-carrying mosquitoes in Barangay Labangon.
Instead of using used oil, the City Health Department and the task force will use chlorine or larvacide, whichever is more effective and economical and safer to use.
Assistant City Epidemiologist Durinda Macaso-col said the task force advised against the use of used oil after sanitary inspectors visited the lagoon in Labangon.
The lagoon, measuring some 1.4 hectares, is suspected to be the major breeding site of mosquitoes in Labangon, which has the highest number of dengue cases among all 80 barangays.
“We were supposed to pour used oil in the lagoon but it did not push through because we learned it could be harmful to the ecosystem. We’re still studying what is the more effective and economical way of doing it, either we use chlorine or larvacide,” Macasocol told Sun.Star Cebu.
The lagoon, which was originally a deep excavation for a building the Gaisanos planned to build, will also have to be drained, she said.
As of Dec. 18, the City Health Department recorded a total of 48 deaths in Cebu City. There were 1,946 cases recorded from Jan. 1 to Dec. 18.
The latest casualty is a child from Barangay Carreta who died last Tuesday.
Macasocol said the task force is still surveying the Gaisano property to find out how deep the pond is and the exact lot area. The information will help them decide what chemicals to use.
Although pouring used oil in the lagoon will kill the mosquitoes, she said they opted not to push through with the mayor’s suggestion because it will only be good for one to two days.
“Whatever we put there, it will only be good for a couple of days because the water continuously flows out of the lagoon. We are studying this so we can come up with something that has long-term benefits,” Macasocol added. (LCR)
