Guiuan: The municipal government of Guiuan, Eastern Samar has ordered all barangays (villages) to intensify environmental sanitation and dengue prevention measures following an increase in cases in the town. Under Municipal Executive Order No. 07-94-2026 signed on July 16 and released on Friday, Mayor Annaliza Gonzales-Kwan directed all barangay officials to undertake sustained sanitation activities to eliminate mosquito breeding sites and reduce the risk of dengue transmission.
According to Philippines News Agency, the order cited a report from the municipal health office (MHO) showing 16 confirmed dengue cases in Guiuan from January to the second week of July 2026. Nine of the cases were recorded in Barangay Salug. Under the directive, all barangays are required to conduct weekly clean-up drives until further notice, remove and properly dispose of water-holding waste materials such as cans, bottles, tires, plastics, and coconut shells, and clear drainage canals, waterways, culverts, and roadside ditches.
'All barangays are instructed to eliminate stagnant water in public areas, vacant lots, schools, cemeteries, markets, and residential communities, trim overgrown vegetation, strengthen solid waste segregation and disposal in accordance with Republic Act No. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, and remove trash along roadsides,' the order read.
It further directed barangays to intensify dengue awareness and environmental sanitation campaigns in coordination with the local health office, mobilize Barangay Health Workers, barangay officials, Solid Waste Management Committees, Sangguniang Kabataan officials, and community volunteers, and assist health personnel in larval surveys, misting, spraying, and other vector control interventions.
Residents are encouraged to help prevent the spread of dengue by searching for and destroying mosquito breeding sites every week, properly managing household waste, maintaining clean surroundings, and cooperating with health workers during inspections and vector control activities.
The MHO, Municipal Engineering Office, Municipal General Services Office, Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office, Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, and other concerned municipal offices were also directed to provide technical and logistical support to barangays.
The order requires every village chief to submit weekly accomplishment reports, including photos and summaries of sanitation activities, to the Office of the Municipal Mayor through the MHO and the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office until the intensified sanitation campaign is lifted.
