DOH Eastern Visayas warns vs leptospirosis

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan. 19  -- The Department of Health (DOH) here has warned the public against the threat of leptospirosis as flooding continues to plague many areas in Eastern Visayas region due to heavy rains.

DOH regional chief of epidemiology and surveillance unit Roderick Boyd Cerro told the public to avoid wading in floodwaters.

Heavy rains caused an abrupt rise in rivers and other waterways, inundating heavily populated communities in Leyte and Samar provinces. The situation has raised the health department’s concern that people may develop leptospirosis.

Leptospirosis is a disease contracted when floodwaters, vegetation, or moist soil are contaminated with the bacteria called leptospira, commonly spread through infected urine or feces of rats.

“We are reminding people not to wade in floodwaters. But if it cannot be avoided, one should wear protective gear such as boots and gloves,” Cerro said.

The official also asked the public to drain potentially contaminated water when possible, control rats in the household by using traps or poison, and maintain cleanliness in the house.

In 2017, at least 11 people died due to leptospirosis in the region, according to DOH. Fatalities were recorded during rainy seasons last year.

Symptoms include fever, chills, red eyes, jaundice, muscle pain, severe headache and little urine production.

“We have prepositioned antibiotics in rural health units for flood-prone communities and local health workers are trained on what kind of medicines are needed for different categories of exposure,” Cerro added.

People who developed fever two days after wading in floodwaters are advised to immediately go to the nearest health center or consult a doctor to avoid complications. (SQM/PNA)

Tacloban airport terminal expansion to be completed end of Feb.

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan.19  -- The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) targets the completion of its expanded terminal building by the end of February to address congestion at the departure area.

CAAP-Eastern Visayas Area Manager Danilo Abarreta said Friday the PHP17-million project is 80 percent complete. It will triple the capacity of the existing 360-seater departure area and expand the check-in area.

“Our departure area is only designed for about 300 passengers, but there are times when the number of waiting passengers goes up to nearly 1,000. The problem of overcrowding is really serious,” Abarreta said.

The project began third quarter of 2017 as part of the PHP1.59 billion worth of projects meant to refurbish the Daniel Z. Romualdez (DZR) Airport in this city.

CAAP pushed for the implementation of the project less than two years after the PHP43.63-million reconstruction of the one-story terminal building badly damaged by Super Typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

The official cited the need to improve the existing facility while waiting for the construction of a new terminal building nearby under the PHP721-million long-term development plan, said Abarreta.

The DZR Airport, classified as Class 1 major domestic airport, is the main gateway from Manila and Cebu to the Eastern Visayas region.

The airport was named after former House of Representatives Speaker Daniel Z. Romualdez, an uncle of former First Lady Imelda Romualdez-Marcos.

The DZR Airport is one of the country’s busiest with 30 daily flights to and from Manila and Cebu.

The airport in the regional capital was ranked as the country’s 9th busiest in 2016, with 1.1 million inbound and outbound passengers. (SQM/PNA)

Tacloban residents unfazed by landslide threats

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan. 19 -- Several residents refused to leave their landslide-prone community at the city’s Quarry district even after four of their neighbors were buried alive by mudslides last week.

The unavailability of a safe place to stay was the main reason why they continued to stay in their old houses, unfazed by imminent danger, said villager Gloria Panis.

“What can we do? We don’t have any place to transfer to,” said Panis, who lived at his brother’s house, near the landslide site.

She moved to her brother’s place after the landslide destroyed their home Saturday night.

“Had the government awarded to us the housing unit promised to us, we would not be staying in this place,” Panis said.

About 30 families in the Quarry district were displaced due to rain-induced landslide that killed four residents. At least five houses were buried and five others were partly damaged.

Village chief Regina Belarmino said residents living at the foot of the hill were beneficiaries of permanent housing projects.

“They have permanent houses, but they refused to stay and transfer there because it is far from the city, far from the school, and far from their workplace,” Belarmino said.

The January 13 landslide in Quarry district was the second one in a month.

On Dec. 14, 2017, two residents were hurt by erosions. (RTA/PNA)

Tacloban airport reopens Friday after emergency repairs

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan. 18  -- The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) is eyeing to reopen the Tacloban Airport after its runway was shut down late Wednesday afternoon due to emerging potholes.

With the improved weather condition, CAAP Eastern Visayas Area Manager Danilo Abarreta is optimistic to complete the emergency repair late Thursday night and reopen the airport Friday dawn.

Abarreta said they were forced to close the airport at 5:29 p.m. on Wednesday after a pilot of Air Asia reported that some portion of 2,138-meter runway is no longer safe for landing and takeoff.

The shutdown has cancelled six inbound and outbound flights on Wednesday night.

Affected by closure on Thursday were eight flights of Air Asia, six Cebu Pacific flights and eight from Philippines Airlines.

The emergency repair has stranded more than 3,000 passengers bound for Tacloban, Cebu, and Manila on Thursday, said Abarreta.

“We already noticed developing potholes late last year, but runway surface has further deteriorated after weeks of continuous rains in the region. There is schedule for permanent replacement of overlay,” Abarreta said.

The official told reporters that there are about 100 potholes of different sizes at the airport’s runway. The biggest has a diameter of 50 centimeters.

The emergency repair is on top of the scheduled long term asphalt overlay project for its runway, which has been running since Dec. 3, 2017 every 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. The project will be completed this January 24.

Last year, the airport got PHP264 million funding for asphalt overlay project, runway upgrading, fencing activities, drainage system, and parking area improvement.

The domestic airport, officially known as Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, is the country’s seventh busiest with an average of 3,200 daily passengers’ traffic.

Last year, the airport accommodated 1.16 million travelers. (SQM/PNA)

E. Visayas Army honors wounded soldier

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan. 17  -- The Philippine Army on Wednesday honored a soldier wounded in a recent gun battle with communist rebels in Northern Samar.

Commander of the Army’s 8th Infantry Division, Maj. Gen. Raul Farnacio, pinned the Wounded Personnel Medal on Cpl. Artemio Bendo Jr. at the Camp Lukban Station Hospital. Bendo and other soldiers of the 43rd Infantry Battalion were in Sumoroy village in Lope de Vega, Northern Samar on Jan. 14 for a humanitarian mission when they encountered a group of rebels.

“This award is a manifestation of the degree of sacrifice that a soldier has to pay in order for our fellow Filipinos to continue to live in peace. It is just fitting to commend personnel, such as Corporal Bendo, who risked his life in helping and protecting the less fortunate in the far-flung areas,” Farnacio said in a statement sent to media on Wednesday.

This is the second clash between soldiers and members of the New People’s Army (NPA) since the end of the holiday truce on January 2.

The first encounter was on Jan. 3 when two rebels were killed in upland Hilapnitan village in Baybay City.

“The successful encounters of our government troops are the result of our effort to defeat the communist terrorists in support of President Duterte’s campaign against rebels who continue to extort money from communities and private businesses and employ atrocities against civilians,” Farnacio added. (SQM/PNA)