Haze still in Bohol

Wake-uppers:

Scene: The local government of Candijay has placed the town under a state of calamity to help the more than 2,000 farmers who were not able to plant their palay due to the long drought that has dried up their farmland.According to Jeryl Lacang-Fuentes, municipal disaster risk reduction and management officer, the resolution was passed in mass motion so help would be provided to the affected farmers. Candijay was the second town in Bohol that was placed under the state of calamity due to the water shortage.

Seen: Miss Bohol Sandugo 2011 Farrah Faye Abarquez Mian passed the September 2019 Physician Licensure Examination (PLE).

Scene: Boholano singer Allan Roy Santarin of Valencia town is step closer to his dream after making it to the Top 64 of GMA’s singing competition "The Clash" Season 2.

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It's 'Plastic Free Bohol' not 'Free Plastic Bohol'

More than 2,000 volunteers joined the International Coastal Cleanup in Bohol province last week.

The presence of Bohol's "mermaid"Jammy Ungab of "Plastic Free Bohol" movement inspired many young people to help clean the environment.

Jammy, who fights for tighter regulations on the use of plastics,  was included in Inquirer's "33 people and projects that moved PH communities" in 2018.

In Doljo Beach in Panglao, volunteers were able to collect a total of 2,300 kgs of non-biodegradable trash.

Plastic Free Bohol also clarified that the movement is "Plastic Free Bohol," and not "Free Plastic Bohol."

"Plastic Free Bohol has been doing what it is doing for more than three years now (and still counting), and yet we still hear from people calling or labeling us differently—such as Free Plastic Bohol,"  a statement posted on Friday.

"Plastic Free Bohol" is a network of volunteers that aims to end plastic pollution in the province, while "Free Plastic Bohol" is a phrase that either suggests releasing plastic or giving away plastics for free in the province.

See the big difference!

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The haze remains in Bohol’s atmosphere, at least until yesterday, and authorities are urging the public to still take precautionary steps, especially those who have sensitive health conditions.

Engr. Cindy Ochea, head of the Environmental Monitoring and Enforcement Division of Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) - 7, said that it's still there.

Six-year-old Jessa Mae Jala has been sneazing and coughing since Wednesday last week. At night time, the child has been hack that prompted her mother, Rowena, to bring her to a clinic for a check up.

The child is not the only one suffering.  All over Bohol, some people are coughing, wheezing and sniffing as a spike in air pollution due to haze which is experiencing in the Central Visayas.

Dave Albarado, 44,  was complaining of runny nose, dry throat and cough since Sunday last week.

He said he has allergies but the weather for the past days worsen his situation that already affected his work becoming focus less.

"I think the haze could be the contributing factor of my allergies because my allergies last only for 24 hours. As of now, it has been days. I don't know what other possible causes of my allergies," he said.

To protect himself from air contaminants, he decided to buy and wear a mask.

"I am doing my best to stay indoor and take medicines to control my symptom," he said.

Residents have taken to social media how the haze is affecting them as air quality continued to worsen.

Some teachers at Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School were also wearing masks to protect themselves.

Another Tagbilaran resident Helen Alagadmo, 43, said she had escaped to  the countryside last Friday for a fresh air.

She went to Barangay Mayana in Jagna town, the highest point in Bohol, but she was surprised to find out that it was also blanketed with haze.

“There is no escape from it. But still a relief to be able to breathe in a cool place," she said while at the strawberry farm at Mayana Upper Sampong overlooking the mountain covered with haze.

“I woke up this morning and my nose was blocked once more,” she added.

The haze enveloping Bohol, which usually enjoys relatively clean air for a province its size, has prompted warnings to the young and elderly to wear mask.

The EMB and the state weather bureau Pagasa had confirmed the presence of haze affecting the Central Visayas including Bohol.

EMB  is monitoring the air quality, but it does not include Tagbilaran and Bohol just yet.

Ochea urged the public to wear protective gear like face mask and to stay indoors as much as possible.

Dr. Jeia Pondoc, Tagbilaran City Health Officer,agreed.

She said she was unsure if the haze contributed to the illnesses experienced by some residents lately.

But she said it was nonetheless necessary to take precautions.

“We advise them to wear the N95 mask rather than the surgical mask,” she said.

N95 masks, she added, could prevent hazardous substances from entering the nostrils.

“The surgical masks have big holes and are merely used in hospitals,” Pondoc said.

Aside from wearing face mask, she also advised the public to eat healthy and nutritious food and to drink plenty of water.

She advised people to stay indoors.

"We have to stay indoors especially  those patients who have history of asthma or having asthma, indoors jud, especially those patients who are susceptible for allergies or having allergies. It could be better for them to stay indors, refrain from outdoor activities just for this time," she said.

Aside from this, the public is advised to monitor updates on the haze situation.

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