DUE to emerging cases of typhoid fever in Barili town, Cebu, its mayor on Thursday, June 23, 2022, ordered water distribution utilities to monitor their pipes for cracks that could cause possible contamination.
Based on data, as of Thursday, Barili recorded 30 cases of typhoid since May, 16 of which were still admitted to the hospital and two were deaths.
Barili Mayor Julieto Flores said he already met with municipal health officers, sanitary inspectors, waterworks heads, Capitol officials and members of the local government to discuss the typhoid situation of the town.
He said they will conduct water chlorination to help bring down the presence of bad bacterias in the waterways.
Typhoid fever is a bacterial infection that can lead to high fever, diarrhea and vomiting. It is caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhimurium, which can be contracted from food or contaminated water.
Despite this, Flores said this is not alarming because the cases are "manageable."
"Dili pud siya matawag nga outbreak, dili pa angayan. Ang atong RHU (Rural Health Unit) nagsuroy na sa mga kabarangayan nga naay kaso sa tipus unya atong gipahatagan, information dissemination nga kinahanglan atong tubig atong pabukalan," Flores said.
(We can't call it an outbreak yet. Our RHU is already patrolling the barangays with typhoid cases and we conduct information dissemination. We also tell them that water should be boiled before consumption.)
Manual chlorination
Flores said the local health office has also started teaching barangays the method of manual chlorination as the town does not have proper chlorinator equipment yet.
To create a stock solution, one has to mix a teaspoon of chlorine powder into a liter of water and set it aside for a week. After seven days, one can take two teaspoons from the stock solution and mix it with five gallons or 20 liters of water. Let the chlorine settle for 30 minutes before consuming the water. Removing the lid of the container can reduce the unpleasant smell of chlorine.
"Ang atong mga tubig, atong gipangtagaan og chlorine...adto na ibutang nila sa source," Flores said.
(We gave our water utilities chlorine... they will put it at the source.) (JGS)