UPTREND. Data on leptospirosis cases in Quezon City from Jan. 1 to Sept. 1, 2025 issued by the QC Epidemiology and Surveillance Division (QCESD) on Tuesday (Sept. 2, 2025). The QC government reported a total of 535 cases and 78 deaths. (Infographic from QCESD)
MANILA – The Quezon City government has reported a surge in leptospirosis infections compared to the same period last year.
In a leptospirosis surveillance report sent by the QC Epidemiology and Surveillance Division (QCESD) to the Philippine News Agency on Tuesday, it said 535 cases and 78 deaths were recorded in the city as of Sept. 1.
This shows a 27-percent increase in cases from the 446 recorded on Sept. 7, 2024, while the number of fatalities more than doubled.
"The latest reported fatality was a 45-year-old male Grab driver from Culiat. He was admitted to Quezon City General Hospital on Aug. 21, 2025, and died the next day, Aug. 22, 2025. In Week 31 alone, which is from July 28 to Aug. 3, the city government said that 179 cases were reported—the highest weekly count this year—surpassing the epidemic threshold," the QCESD surveillance report read.
It added that District 2 reported the highest number of cases at 183, with 52 cases each in Commonwealth, while the affected cases ranged from 4 to 77 years old, with most cases seen in the age group of 41 to 50.
The city health department linked nearly 80 percent of cases to flood exposure.
To address the problem, it has mobilized health centers, including field workers, to distribute free prophylactic medicine.
Health centers in Quezon City have remained open under a skeletal workforce, regardless of class and work suspensions, while house-to-house distribution teams went around flood-hit communities
Announcement and distribution of infographic materials are intensified through the city's social media pages to remind residents not to disregard leptospirosis, especially if they wade in floodwater.
"Lumusong sa baha? Huwag magpabaya. Mahalaga ang wastong at sapat na pag-inom ng gamot laban sa leptospirosis upang makaiwas sa sakit na ito, at mas mainam na makainom sa unang 72 oras mula sa exposure sa tubig-baha (Waded in floodwater? Don't neglect it. It is important to take the correct and sufficient amount of medication against leptospirosis to prevent this disease, and it is best to take it within the first 72 hours of exposure to floodwater)," the QCHD reminder reads.
The city's intensified campaign against the bacterial infection also includes deployment of flood response teams bringing doxycycline directly to affected households, evacuation centers, and high-risk workers such as construction crews and garbage collectors.
The city government also emphasized the need for prompt medical consultation if symptoms appear, especially fever, muscle pain, or jaundice.
On Saturday, Quezon City experienced a phenomenal amount of rainfall in a day, causing flooding in areas that did not normally go underwater in the past.
Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) Administrator Nathaniel Servando, in an earlier interview with the PNA, compared the flood to the Sept. 26, 2009 flooding when Tropical Storm Ondoy struck, bringing 455 mm of rain in Metro Manila in six hours.
On the other hand, 96.6 mm of rain was recorded in the PAGASA Science Garden in Quezon City between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Local Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office spokesperson Peachy de Leon said this overwhelmed the city's drainage system, resulting in massive flooding. (PNA)
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