EDITORIAL - The other threat

Floods are a constant presence in Cebu City during the rainy season.

At the very least they can cause inconvenience to people who are forced to take shelter to avoid being drenched, caught in heavy traffic because of flooded roads, or stranded for hours because of rising floodwaters. One the other hand, they can also cause property damage when they enter homes and destroy properties. They can also do worse when they sweep people away.

But when the rains come, it’s not just fast water or rising water that becomes a threat. There’s also the threat that many of us don’t see coming; still water.

According to a story in this newspaper, Cebu City has recorded a double-digit increase in dengue cases and a more than threefold rise in fatalities this year.

The City Epidemiology Surveillance and Statistics Unit of the Cebu City Health Department said that from January 1 to July 18, 2026, the city logged 1,228 dengue cases and 10 deaths, translating to a case fatality rate of 0.81%.

These represent a 12.35% percent increase in infections from the 1,093 cases recorded during the same period in 2025. Deaths also rose from three last year to 10 this year.

Ten deaths due to dengue may not seem like much, but one death from dengue, a preventable disease, is always one too many.

Yes, dengue is preventable due to the fact that the mosquito that carries and transmits the dengue virus, aedes agypti, needs still water to breed. And because still water doesn’t go anywhere, anyone can just find such breeding places and eliminate them.

Sometimes such still water can be an entire backyard flooded with water that has nowhere to drain to; sometimes it can just be a discarded can or pail that has collected rainwater.

Even the smallest amount of still water has the potential to breed a flying killer.

It’s time for us to be vigilant against dengue again. Watch those backyards for containers that can trap water, or properties or abandoned lots that have turned into swamps.

Preventing dengue the virus from spreading is better, and a lot cheaper, compared to treating it.