3 kids dead, 200 ill due to diarrhea in Sarangani village

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines—Three children died while about 200 people fell ill due to diarrhea in the village of Tinoto in Maasim, Sarangani, the town’s  health office said Tuesday.

Jaileen Majar, Maasim health officer, said an outbreak of diarrhea had been declared in the village because of the rising number of cases since the disease was first reported a week ago.

The victims that succumbed to diarrhea were five years old and below, Majar said.

The municipal hospital in Maasim is now crowded with patients seeking medical treatment for the illness, she said.

Because of the sheer number of diarrhea patients, Majar said the hospital could not accommodate all the patients so that makeshift beds had to be put up outside the facility.

She said the municipal health office had taken water samples from the village to determine what has been causing the illness.

Rajik Kudarat, Tinoto village chair said that because of the outbreak, the village had been declared under a state of calamity.

He said this paved the way for the village government to use its 5-percent calamity fund to assist diarrhea victims in their medication.

To prevent more people from being ill, Kudarat said the villagers had been advised to boil water for 10 minutes before drinking it to make sure that water-borne bacteria are killed.

A cleanliness drive was also ongoing, he said.