DOT issues travel advisory vs. dengue hotspots in Bicol

By Mar Serrano

August 13, 2019, 6:02 pm

LEGAZPI CITY -- The Department of Tourism (DOT) in Bicol has issued a travel advisory temporarily banning visitation to specific areas identified as dengue “hotspots” by health authorities.

Benjamin Santiago, DOT regional director, on Monday said the advisory was issued after the Department of Health (DOH) declared a national epidemic due to the rising cases of the mosquito-borne disease in many parts of the country.

“We strongly enjoin tourists to temporarily avoid visiting areas identified by DOH as hotspot as a health preventive measure,” he said in an interview.

He, however, did not identify which tourist areas are dengue hotspots.

Santiago said the travel ban would remain hoisted until the DOH issues a health bulletin clearing the areas considered as hotspots.

Tourists may visit other areas in Bicol not identified as hotspots, but they are advised to take the necessary precautions such as avoiding places suspected to be possible breeding grounds of dengue-carrying mosquitoes.

As of August 7, the Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (RESU) has recorded 104 villages in Bicol with rising incidence of dengue. Camarines Sur tops the list with 45 villages followed by Albay with 22; Sorsogon, 17; Catanduanes, 15; and Masbate, five villages.

DOH regional director Ernie Vera, in a recent news conference, said the RESU has recorded 4,241 dengue cases with 40 deaths from January 1 to August 3, this year, or a 157-percent increase from the 1,653 cases and 18 deaths during the same period last year.

Camarines Sur has 1,706 cases with 17 deaths; followed by Sorsogon, 784 with eight deaths; Albay, 769 with 10 deaths; Catanduanes, 563 with one death; Masbate, 271 with two deaths; Camarines Norte, 144 cases with two deaths; and others (transients), four cases.

Vera said the figures reported could only be the “tip of the iceberg” as there could be many unreported cases.

Meanwhile, Sorsogon Governor Francis Escudero and Masbate Governor Antonio Kho have both issued an executive order mandating a synchronized cleanup and sanitation drive in all towns and barangays in their respective provinces.

In Albay, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan is expected to pass a resolution placing the province under a “state of calamity” due to the rising incidence of dengue. (PNA)

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