‘By DANNY O. SAGUN
PIA Dagupan Infocenter

“Itaob Mo!’

With this strategy, the city government tries to meet head-on and win the seasonal battle against dengue especially during the rainy reason.

The city council, on motion of Councilor Jesus D. Canto, last Tuesday asked Mayor Alipio Fernandez, Jr. to direct the city health office to implement the “Operation Itaob Mo,” referring to the disposal of all water-containing vessels in the city.

The resolution also asked the city engineering office to inspect gutters of all buildings to prevent these from becoming breeding sites for the mosquitoes.

Canto noted that discarded tires, clogged gutters, tin cans, empty bottles, flower vases and other containers become veritable breeding places of the dengue-carrying mosquito aedes egypti if left indisposed.

The health problem is effectively contained by simply removing possible breeding places, Canto, formerly head of the Region l Medical Center, stressed in his sponsorship speech.

Dengue, he said, is one of the most dreaded vector-borne diseases transmitted through the bite of an infected day-biting female aedes mosquito.

Containers like pails being used to store water should be covered well to prevent mosquitoes from using these for breeding, he also said

City heath officer Leonard Carbonel, who was called by the sangguniang panlungsod for him to share his views on the matter, lauded Canto for coming up with the measure.

For the whole province, a total of 143 dengue cases with three deaths was recorded by the provincial health office from January to July 16 this year, assistant provincial health officer Ana de Guzman said in a text message. She stressed however that the figures were lower than those recorded in the same period last year.

She also confirmed a report that the island town of Anda had six suspected dengue cases.