Fumigation Drive Up in Laoag Due to Rising Dengue Cases

LAOAG CITY (8 September) – City officials have intensified their anti-dengue drive with the frequent fumigation of villages known to have residents who have been affected with the dengue virus.

City councilor Manolito Dacuycuy, chair of the committee on health, said five more fogging machines were bought from the city’s P19 million-calamity fund so that they could expand the number of villages where fumigation will be applied.

“Fumigation is being carried twice daily in so-called dengue hotspots to ensure that dengue-carrying mosquitoes would be terminated,” he said.

City personnel conduct fumigation from 6 am to 9 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm when dengue-causing mosquitoes are known to be prevalent.

The city council has earlier declared Laoag under a calamity state due to rising number of dengue victims. The city health office has recorded more than 200 dengue-affected victims with four deaths.

City Mayor Michael Fariñas has ordered the creation of a “war room” equipped with locator maps, monitoring systems and direct communication lines as part of the city’s anti-dengue drive.

Village officials were also advised to identify other possible mosquito-breeding places so that prompt action would be adopted. (Cristina Arzadon)