FLOOD-BORNE DISEASES RISING / MORE
BODIES PULLED OUT FROM RUBBLES
[PHOTO
AT LEFT - Boys play basketball in Barangay Pungo, Calumpit, Bulacan,
where thousands are still displaced following the worst flooding in 40 years.
AP| MANILA, Philippines]
MANILA, OCTOBER 13, 2009 (STAR) By Sheila Crisostomo - Health officials warned the public yesterday of an increase in cases of leptospirosis and other water-borne diseases in calamity areas that are still flooded after Luzon was ravaged by tropical storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng” in the past two weeks.
From Sept. 29 to Oct. 12, the Department of Health (DOH) recorded 181 leptospirosis cases, with 152 of the patients reported in Metro Manila.
Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease caused by exposure to water contaminated with the urine of infected animals, particularly rats. This can happen by swallowing contaminated food or water or through skin contact, especially broken skin, or through the eyes or nose.
The victims are usually infected after wading in floodwaters.
Symptoms include high fever, severe headache, chills, muscle aches, redness of eyes, vomiting and jaundice or yellowing of the skin and eyes.
Health officials said other flood-related diseases that are expected are dengue fever, diarrhea and cholera.
The DOH said the number of leptospirosis cases had more than doubled since Ondoy brought heavy rains last Sept. 26 and flooded portions of Metro Manila, Rizal, Laguna and Bulacan.
During the same period in 2008, the total number of cases stood at only 69, with 26 recorded in Metro Manila.
Philippine General Hospital (PGH) spokesman Dr. Michael Tee said that from Oct. 9 to 11 alone, a total of 20 leptospirosis patients were brought to the hospital. The patients included three children.
Tee said that all of the patients have already developed acute renal or kidney failure requiring them to undergo at least two sessions of hemodialysis.
Two of the victims – a 32-year-old man from Quezon City and a 28-year-old man from Manila – died even before they were subjected to hemodialysis, which costs around P10,000 per session.
“This is very alarming. Having this many is a serious matter. The PGH is mobilizing its resources as we expect more leptospirosis cases in the coming days due to the massive flooding brought about by Ondoy and then Pepeng,” he told The STAR.
Tee added the PGH had set up a leptospirosis zone wherein those who have waded in floodwaters and have manifested symptoms are immediately attended to. “Speedy treatment and proper management can result in better prognosis,” he added.
Dr. Elizabeth Montemayor, head of PGH’s Nephrology Section, said the victims waded in floodwaters but it was only recently when symptoms started showing up, since the incubation period for leptospirosis is 10 to 14 days.
“We want to warn the public that if they have history of wading in floodwaters and they develop fever and other symptoms, they have to see a doctor immediately. They should not wait for more serious complications to develop. Otherwise, the damage might already be irreversible,” he added.
Leptospirosis can become fatal when an infected individual develops kidney failure, meningitis or inflammation of the membrane around the spine and brain, liver failure, pulmonary hemorrhage and respiratory distress.
The website of the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that leptospirosis can be treated with antibiotics “such as doxycycline or penicillin, which should be given early in the course of the disease.”
“Intravenous antibiotics may be required for persons with more severe symptoms. Persons with symptoms suggestive of leptospirosis should contact a health care provider,” the website said.
Montemayor said that before Ondoy, a month could pass before the PGH admits leptospirosis-related renal cases.
“In September, there were only three cases. With the massive flooding, we expect to see more cases of leptospirosis. We hope the public would not be complacent about this,” she added.
Red Cross sets up medical station
The Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) has set up a 50-bed medical station at the Philippine Sports Arena (former ULTRA) in Pasig City to extend medical assistance to victims of Ondoy.
PNRC secretary-general Gwendolyn Pang said the medical station is open 24 hours a day to provide medical assistance for typhoon victims who are now temporarily housed at ULTRA and suffering from minor illness.
Pang said the Red Cross decided to put up the medical station after they observed an increase in cases of diarrhea, cough, colds and other minor infection among the 734 families staying at ULTRA.
Volunteer doctors, nurses, first aid staff, social workers and PNRC staff will man the medical station round-the-clock until such time that evacuees return to their respective homes, she added.
“This is not the first time that PNRC is setting up a medical station. During the typhoid outbreak in Laguna, we successfully gave medical assistance to children and adults in Calamba. And now, we are doing this again for the victims of Ondoy,” said Pang.
Pang, however, clarified that the medical station is not intended to replace hospital services but is an extension area only to give immediate medical assistance to evacuees suffering from minor illnesses.
Stranded comatose patient transferred
The PNRC reported that they have rescued a 58-year-old coma patient and 800 other people from flooded areas in Pangasinan.
PNRC said Ludivino Apalis was transferred to a safer hospital with the help of volunteers from Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) who passed by Dagupan Medical Center, which was already flooded.
Ludivino is in critical condition at the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Dagupan Medical Center, but doctors could no longer attend to him because of the flood.
A Red Cross truck eventually transferred the comatose patient to Nazareth Hospital where doctors found out that Ludivino was already in a coma and suffering from acute renal failure or malfunctioning of kidneys and enlargement of prostate. He is currently confined at the ICU of Nazareth Hospital.
PNRC said SBMA volunteers also rescued 800 stranded people and brought them to the Dagupan Astrodome. With Mayen Jaymalin
More bodies pulled out from mountainside rubble By Cecille Suerte Felipe and Artemio Dumlao (The Philippine Star) Updated October 13, 2009 12:00 AM
[PHOTO
AT LEFT - Police officers step on a mud-covered SUV while accompanying a
resident at a car repair shop in Barangay Puguis, La Trinidad, Benguet as the
government turned its focus from rescue operations to sending relief to northern
provinces devastated by floods and cut off by landslides.
ANDY ZAPATA JR.]
MANILA, Philippines - As the weather cleared, disaster teams pulled out more bodies from tons of earth that buried several mountainside communities in the Cordillera Autonomous Region (CAR) during the onslaught of typhoon “Pepeng.”
Olive Luces, executive director of the Office of Civil Defense-CAR, said the death toll from the landslides and floods reached 270 yesterday. The CAR police said 82 people were injured and 32 still missing.
Rescue workers were trying to clear roads so that food, water and other supplies could reach survivors.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) said over 50 road sections and nine major bridges had either been destroyed in the landslides or washed away by floods, making it difficult to reach the hardest hit areas.
The relentless rain loosened saturated soil in mountain communities in CAR, triggering a deadly torrent of mud and rocks late last week that swallowed houses and roads.
In Baguio City, desperate residents were clambering through debris and negotiating roadside cliffs to bring supplies or to seek help.
The city had been totally isolated for two days, forcing the US military to airlift food supplies to the area.
“Our food supply was gone, our gasoline requirements are now reserved for priority emergency vehicles,” Baguio Mayor Peter Bautista said on local radio. Over 300,000 people live in the summer capital. He said funeral parlors were also running low on coffins.
Most of the dead were recovered in a mountainside community called Little Kibungan, where tons of mud and floodwaters buried or swept away houses as people slept.
Marsman Diang said he wept as he frantically dug into the mud Friday for his five nieces and nephews. Four were found dead, wrapped in a bed sheet.
One was pulled out barely breathing and did not make it to the hospital alive.
The children’s father, Diang’s brother, left to work in Japan two months ago to raise money for the kids’ education. He heard about their deaths in a phone call from Diang. “He couldn’t talk. I heard him weeping with his wife when I called to tell them that their children were gone,” Diang said. President Arroyo is expected to visit the community today.
In barangay Twinpeaks in Tuba, Benguet, councilman Ambrosio Bengwasan and his 26-year-old son Oliver remain unaccounted for.
A relative, Romeo Milo, 60, had been walking around the devastated village trying to locate the spot where the two could have been buried. He related how a loud thud preceded the surge of mud and floodwaters from a nearby mountain. The landslides killed five villagers.
NDCC executive officer Glenn Rabonza, meanwhile, said the Department of Health has sent 200 cadaver bags as well as five embalmers to Baguio City.
A US Chinook helicopter airlifted coffins from Pampanga to Baguio City.
“Our disaster operation is still in the active search and rescue mode as well as relief distributions,” Rabonza said.
Early yesterday, a convoy of 32 military trucks left Camp Aguinaldo to deliver 1,000 water jugs, 5,000 kilos of used clothing, 2,000 kilos of blankets, 2,000 kilos of plastic mats, and 4,000 kilos of food packs to Baguio City.
Rabonza said 2,000 anti-tetanus shots have been delivered to CAR for injured landslide survivors.
A US-C130 cargo plane loaded with relief goods and medicine is now on standby at Clark Field in Pampanga for a mercy flight to CAR and to the Cagayan Valley region.
Rabonza said the aircraft will leave once the runways of the Loakan and Tuguegarao airports are cleared of debris.
PNP warns profiteers
The Philippine National Police said it will not hesitate to arrest violators of the price control law.
“We will require the PNP to monitor closely prices of commodities in Baguio City and all disaster affected areas,” Director Leopoldo Bataoil, chief of the Directorate for Police Community Relations, told The STAR in a text message.
“We appeal to all concerned to help the victims of calamity instead of taking advantage of them. We will arrest violators of the price control law and hoarders of basic commodities,” he said.
Clearing work in full swing
Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, armed forces spokesman, said the military is working closely with US troops in clearing portions of Kennon and Naguilian Roads and Marcos Highway.
“It will be massive and expensive on the part of the AFP,” he said.
“Actually these operations starting from Ondoy are starting to take their toll on the resources of the AFP because we use much fuel,” he said.
“I’m not saying we’ve run out of resources, but we’re using much for these operations,” he said.
Since the start of the calamities, the military has deployed an estimated 10,000 troops for search, rescue and relief efforts.
He said they have already started pulling out troops and equipment from relief efforts in Metro Manila for deployment to Central and Northern Luzon.
“Some of the equipment are being pulled out from Marikina, Metro Manila and being brought now to Northern Luzon,” he said. “Our heavy equipment are needed in Northern Luzon for rehabilitation efforts.”
But Brawner assured that relief and rehabilitation efforts would continue in the affected areas of the metropolis, as well as in the nearby province of Rizal.
NDCC spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said Kennon Road is now open to light vehicles.
He added that damage to property and crops could increase from the original estimate of P5 billion.
Pepeng pummeled northern Luzon for a week before moving on the weekend into the South China Sea.
It first hit as a typhoon on Oct. 3, exactly one week after tropical storm “Ondoy” dumped the heaviest rains in more than 40 years on Metro Manila.
Ondoy has left 337 people dead, with the death toll from both storms surpassing 630. Another 300,000 people out of the over six million people affected remain in evacuation camps. With Jaime Laude, James Mananghaya, AP