Dengue claims two Mumbra lady residents

Two dengue deaths have been reported in the Mumbra area of Thane district; this, in turn, has revealed an alarming trend -that the disease has now spread its tentacles far beyond Mumbai.

Medical sources said that several cases of dengue have been reported from Thane district in the last couple of months. The rapid spread of the disease has resulted in the deaths of two women from Armash Apartments and Vafaa Park in Mumbra and the victims have been identified as Fauzia Ansari and Fatima Sheikh, sources said.

A senior health official revealed that Fatima had reported high fever and had been first admitted to Billal Hospital for treatment and later shifted to Kalsekar Hospital. However, the patient developed complications and died after some time, sources said. The other patient, Fauzia, had been shifted to Mumbai for treatment but she, too, developed complications and died.

Sources in Mumbra revealed that the recent heavy rain had led to accumulation of water at various places and this had provided a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Also, the rapid construction activity in the region was abetting the breeding. In the absence of fumigation, there had been an outbreak of dengue in Mumbra and nearby areas, sources said. Even after the two deaths, the health departments of Thane and Mumbai have not woken up to the seriousness of the problem.

“Not just stagnant water, mounds of garbage collect at many places and these become ideal breeding sites,” a local resident said. The dengue mosquito breeds in clear water and hence containers/drums should be cleared regularly at construction sites.