Quezon town cries for help vs malaria spread

QUEZON, Quezon — "We need help."

Thus appealed Mayor Magsaysay Oliveros of this island town where 12 barangays — out of a total 24 — are being hounded by a deadly strain of the mosquito-borne malaria.

Oliveros told The STAR that they are worried that there will be more malaria cases if they get no help from government agencies.

"I am appealing to the national government, our provincial government, non-government organizations and other (groups) to help us in fighting malaria," he said.

Dr. Xeres Jasmin Villanueva, municipal health officer, said 26 residents aged four to 50 of the 12 barangays have tested positive for Plasmodium falciparum, the malarial strain that killed broadcaster Reyster Langit and two of his crewmembers, who contracted it while doing a documentary in Palawan.

The malarial strain, spread by Anopheles mosquitoes, is the most dangerous with the highest rates of complications and morbidity.

Villanueva identified the affected barangays as Poblacion 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, Cagbalogo, Tagcawa, Guinhawa, Villagomez, Silangan, Montaña, and Mascariña.

Villanueva appealed for more spray guns so they could rid all the 24 barangays of potential breeding sites of Anopheles mosquitoes, saying that selective spraying could just drive the mosquitoes to neighboring villages.

Villanueva said malaria broke out in September last year, but re-emerged last month, prompting Oliveros to declare a state of calamity.

Oliveros said the municipal council has released P500,000 from the calamity fund, but the amount is not enough to combat malaria. — Arnell Ozaeta