Health execs monitor dengue rise in 3 Metro areas

Health officials are keeping tabs on at least three areas in Metro Manila for a possible rise in dengue cases during the rainy season. Radio dzBB reported Tuesday that Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the areas under watch also include some areas in Zamboanga City in Mindanao. Duque said the first area under watch is Signal Village and Western Bicutan in Taguig City, where at least 76 dengue cases have been recorded so far. A second area is Bagong Silang village in Caloocan City, and a third is the Baesa district in Quezon City. But Duque maintained that while the Health Department has so far recorded some 8,300 cases so far this year, this was still seven percent down from 8,908 cases in the same period last year. The Health Department continues to take efforts against dengue, which it has branded a year-round threat. It has undertaken fogging and spraying in several areas considered breeding sites of dengue-carrying mosquitoes. But the DOH has also urged residents to keep their surroundings clean to prevent mosquitoes from breeding in their neighborhoods. - GMANews.TV