Perilous season

The point is to not let up in our collective efforts, especially now the country is entering a potentially dangerous time — rainy season.

For one, the rainy months are also the season for regular flu. In 2018, a report citing WHO said influenza accounted for 12.45 percent of total deaths in the Philippines.

Plus, dengue cases rise during the monsoon. The good news here is dengue cases in 2020 decreased from the previous year, when there was an epidemic.

Less deadly but not less worrisome are the typhoons. An average of 20 batter the Philippines yearly and thankfully, we have not seen a repeat of the super typhoons of the past, like Yolanda.

In that regard, we hope the authorities attending to disaster risk management have tweaked their preparations to account for the pandemic. When the storms come and if people flee their homes, evacuation centers will need to be managed differently. The last thing we need is for evacuations to become super-spreader events.

Obviously, the pandemic makes everything worse. But being prepared can mitigate the impact, as shown by some countries like Singapore and South Korea.

Individuals should also do their part to help. For one, people should get a vaccine as early as they can. People should also wear masks properly, wash hands regularly and for now, avoid other people, including friends and family.

These may be simple measures but the last surge reminds us that infections can resurge rapidly when we forget to follow those precautions. We should learn from the recent resurgence and act appropriately to avert further disruptions to our recovery.