E. B. Magalona officials, led by Mayor Marvin Malacon, visit Barangay Batea where one resident was found positive for cholera.*
A cholera outbreak was declared in three barangays in EB Magalona, Negros Occidental, on Monday October 17, after four cases of the water-borne disease, including one death, were reported in the town.
The cholera cases in Negros Occidental have hit 12, with two deaths, Dr. Ernell Tumimbang, Provincial Health Officer, said Monday.
All cases from September 26 to October 17 were from coastal villages of the third district of Negros Occidental, he said.
Aside from the four cases in EB Magalona, Silay City also had five confirmed cholera cases with one death, Talisay City – two and Victorias City – one , Tumimbang said.
WATER TESTS
Tumimbang said of the first batch of 10 water samples sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) one from Barangay Batea, EB Magalona, tested positive for cholera and nine others for other water-borne diseases that can cause acute diarrhea.
About 10 additional water samples have been sent to the RITM for testing, he added.
Tumimbang said cholera could be water or food borne.
EB MAGALONA
Mayor Marvin Malacon said he declared a cholera outbreak in barangays Batea, 3 (Poblacion), and Tanza in EB Magalona on Monday.
He said they recorded two cholera cases in Tanza, where one patient died, and one case each in Batea and 3 (Poblacion).
The fatality was a 37-year-old male from Hacienda Manalo 5 in Barangay Tanza.
He died of septic shock from infectious diarrhea and severe dehydration on October 11 after being admitted at the Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City the day before, the mayor said.
The three others hit with cholera were a 60-year-old male, also from Hacienda Manalo, a 2-year-old boy from Barangay 3 (Poblacion), and a 30-year-old female of Sitio Tinapok in Barangay Batea, the mayor said.
They have visited the areas where cholera positive cases were detected to urge residents to make sure that the food and water they consume are clean, said Malacon, who assured that the municipal government is on top of the situation.
They have been advised to boil their drinking water, or subject it to chlorination, he said.
The Local Drinking Water Quality Monitoring Committee is implementing more stringent measures to contain the cholera outbreak and avert the incidence of cholera and other water-borne diseases, he said.
Malacon said owners and operators of the water refilling stations in EB Magalona who have no business and sanitation permits will not be allowed to operate.
They were urged to subject their water samples to bacteriological testing with accredited Department of Health laboratories immediately, and to post their safety clearance in conspicuous areas in their stores, he said.*