As dengue continues to surge across Iloilo, the province races against time to curb the rising health threat that has already claimed 14 lives this year.
The Provincial Health Office (PHO) said the 14th dengue fatality in the province is a 54-year-old woman from the town of Dumangas.
From January 1 to August 2, 2025, the PHO’s Provincial Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (PESU) logged a total of 3,705 cases, lower by 21.7 percent compared to to the same period last year.
The towns with the highest number of dengue cases include Oton leads with 278, followed by San Joaquin (228), Janiuay (194), Dumangas (175), Leon (167), Pototan (153), Cabatuan (143), Barotac Nuevo (135), Lambunao (132), and Tigbauan (111).
Children aged 1 to 9 years remain the most affected group, followed by those aged 10-19, 20-29, 40 and above, and 30-39.
Clusters of dengue cases have increased in seven barangays, with a 10% rise compared to morbidity week 30, and 27 municipalities have reported clustering.
To bolster the province’s fight against dengue and other vector-borne diseases, the PHO partnered with Go Forward Pest Control to conduct a seminar on Urban Pests and Control, focusing on dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
Forty-one sanitation inspectors (35 rural and 6 provincial) attended the training, which emphasized Integrated Vector Management (IVM)—a holistic, sustainable, and safe approach combining environmental management, biological and chemical control, personal protection, community education, collaboration, and surveillance.
The seminar taught key strategies such as searching for and destroying mosquito breeding sites, using larvivorous fish and bacteria to control larvae, and applying larvicides and fogging only as a last resort.
It also encouraged personal protective habits like using repellents and wearing long-sleeved clothing during peak mosquito activity times.
Empowering Barangay Health Workers, youth, and barangay officials, alongside collaboration with LGUs, schools, churches, and the private sector, were emphasized as critical to sustained vector control efforts.
The PHO urged the public to continue following the “4S” strategy: Search and destroy mosquito breeding grounds, Self-protect with repellents and clothing, Seek early consultation, and Support community efforts.IMT
