MANILA, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- The mayor of Quezon City, the most populous city in the capital region of the Philippines, declared a dengue outbreak on Saturday, citing a nearly 200 percent surge in cases.

From Jan. 1 to Feb. 14, the city's health department recorded 1,769 dengue cases, nearly 200 percent higher than last year, said Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte.

Belmonte said 10, including eight minors, have died from the disease.

"Our declaration of a dengue outbreak ensures that we are on top of the situation, and we are doing everything we can to protect our residents from this deadly disease, especially our children," Belmonte said.

Fifty-eight percent of the reported cases involve school-aged children aged five to 17, while 44 percent are children aged one to 10.

As a primary solution to address the late diagnosis of dengue, all 66 city health centers will be open during the weekends from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to accommodate possible dengue patients, Belmonte said.

The city's outbreak declaration came one day after the Philippines' Department of Health noted increased water and food-borne diseases, influenza-like illnesses, leptospirosis, and dengue.

According to government data, Quezon City has a population of nearly 3 million as of 2020. Enditem

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