Dengue risk high on building sites

Construction sites are a high-risk breeding ground for mosquitoes, with dangers coming from rapid postwar development in the east and north and intense building in the capital, Colombo, health officials said.

The National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU) repeated warnings that schools and religious worship places are also major mosquito breeding sites.

NDCU Consultant Community Physician Dr. Preshila Samaraweera said as the rapid development in Colombo city had made it mandatory for all construction sites to appoint a safety officer to keep the area medical officer informed of the number of local dengue cases and other relevant matters.

“Every institution must have their own mechanism of premise inspection for dengue in place. This concept would be more practical than sending out officials from the unit every week,” she said.

Last year, 51,429 dengue cases were reported islandwide, with 56 deaths. Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Jaffna, Kandy and Trincomalee are highrisk areas.

Dr. Samaraweera said the target for this year is

to bring down the number of dengue patients from the current 250 out of every 100,000 head of population to 100 per 100,000 people.

Dengue cases in Jaffna rose to 4,058 last year with one death. Almost a quarter of the cases were recorded in December, when the north was swept by the monsoon.

Our Jaffna Correspondent, N. Lohathayalan, reports around 5,400 dengue cases were reported in the Northern Province last year, with two deaths in the Vavuniya district and one death in Mannar as well as the fatality in Jaffna.

Dengue was increasing because of overcrowding in towns and the prevalence of discarded containers that fill with rainwater and become mosquito breeding grounds.

The public had short-term memories of dengue dangers and the need to keep properties clear of breeding

grounds, Gampaha’s regional epidemiologist, Dr. Chrishantha Samaraweera said: “They will work for the betterment of the society during a dengue spike but then it changes with time”.

Dr. Samaraweera said clean-up programmes and daily inspections were being carried out in the area and awareness programmes conducted in schools.

Dengue risks in Batticaloa have risen with postwar development, authorities there said.

Dr. Dharshini Kantharuban, regional epidemiologist in Batticaloa, also said unlike in other provinces, Batticaloa had large breeding sites occurring in uncovered overhead cement tanks and wells and that insanitary dumping of solid waste caused up to 40 per cent of dengue cases.

“We have put fish in wells to devour mosquito larvae and are covering overhead tanks with nets,” she said.