Aedes aegypti or yellow fever mosquito. Close up a Mosquito sucking human blood,Vector borne diseases, Chikungunya, Dengue fever Rift Valley fever, Yellow fever, Zika, from Shutterstock.com

Just in the beginning of the month, the Environment Agency (NEA) said that 499 people were diagnosed with dengue fever at the end of June, the highest weekly number in more than four years since 2015.
However, in an update in NEA’s website on Monday (15 July), the Agency stated that the figure for dengue cases in a week has hit a new 5-year high, with 665 cases recorded last week.
This number is for the period between 7 to 13 July, and it showed an increase of 72 cases compared to the previous week.
If that is not all, it also surpasses the previous weekly peak of 637 cases recorded in January 2016. The highest weekly number of cases in recent years was 891 cases in July 2014.
“A total of 7,373 dengue cases have been reported this year (as of 13 July 2019), about five times more than the 1.481 dengue cases we saw in the same period last year,” said NEA.
As such, it calls for urgent action to be taken to “eliminate potential mosquito breeding habitats in the community”.
Out of the latest 182 dengue clusters reported, the largest cluster is located in the vicinity around Woodlands Avenue 6, Woodlands Circle, Woodlands Drive 40, Woodlands Drive 60, Woodlands Drive 70 and Woodlands Drive 72, with a total of 216 cases recorded.
However, NEA observed a “slowing down” in transmission of the disease in the last seven weeks in the Woodlands cluster.
In fact, it highlighted that only one case was reported in the cluster in the past two weeks, compared to 27 cases in a week, when the transmission was at its peak.
In Singapore, large clusters with a relatively fast rate of dengue transmission have been observed at Pasir Ris, Joo Chiat and Jurong East, NEA said.
Given that the situation is still at a risky state, NEA warned everyone to be alert to the threat of dengue.
To highlight the seriousness of this problem, 44 individuals have had the more severe dengue haemorrhagic fever, and five people have lost their lives so far – equal to the total death count in 2018 alone.
NEA told that the mosquito surveillance has revealed that the population of the Aedes mosquito – the main agent in spreading dengue – went up by 56% in May, compared with March.
“The persistently high Aedes aegypti mosquito population increases the risk of transmission of the dengue virus, and urgent action is needed to eliminate potential mosquito-breeding habitats in the community,” it added.
The Agency also noted that it’s normal that there’s a spike in dengue cases from June to October as the warm weather shortens the breeding cycle of mosquitoes.
However, looking at NEA’s chart, it shows that the number of cases were on an upward trend since March and not a sudden spike in June.

According to TOC’s sources, NEA is also uncertain what caused the spike in the cases and is trying to figure it out.
TOC has reached out to NEA for their comments on the cause of the outbreak and is yet to receive a reply.
As a prevention measure, NEA explained, “To protect ourselves, all of us need to play our part in removing stagnant water from our environment, so as to deprive the mosquitoes of their breeding habitats. Inverting pails and flower pot plates and changing water in vases regularly are simple steps that everyone can take to prevent mosquitoes from establishing a foothold in our neighbourhoods.”
People who have been infected with the virus will usually have sudden onset of fever that can lasts up to seven days, along with severe headache, joint and muscle pain, nausea and vomiting, and skin rash.
In extreme cases, there is haemorrhaging, with bleeding in the gums, nose as well as under the skin, or with blood in the urine and stool.
Therefore, NEA urged those with dengue fever symptoms to immediately seek medical attention.

Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
You May Also Like

Australian expat being investigated for alleged punching incident

By Tiffany Gwee An Australian expatriate, Mr Aaron Jeremiejczyk, who was accused…

关卡通关拥堵投诉 尚穆根归咎人手不足

针对近期兀兰和大士关卡堵塞和交通混乱投诉不断增加,内政部长尚穆根归咎于移民局面对人手不足问题。 但他指出,人手短缺并非只在移民局出现,许多部门也面临同样问题。 他在今天巡视兀兰关卡时表示,在年末佳节期间,每天的乘客量比平时增加10巴仙,在大士和兀兰关卡通关人数增加至43万人。 当局增派人手,单在上周就增加500多名关卡人员加班工作。但基于安全因素,尚穆根未透露实际部署的关卡人员总数。 “关卡人员只能由国人担任” 据《今报》报导,尚穆根告诉记者,移民局人手仍不足,因为关卡人员只能由新加坡人来担任。 他强调,关卡人员都已经竭尽所能工作,在佳节期间,只有10巴仙的职员获准拿假。 针对一些柜台关闭的情况,尚穆根解释职员都是根据实际的需求进行部署,例如出境处通关流量较多,就调派多些人手过去,反之亦然。 他指出,职员根本没有闲暇翘脚,他们可能被调派到人流量更高的岗位,长时间工作。也有柜台改为专门处理罗厘的出入境。 两周前,关卡出现大排长龙现象,有民众堵在车龙中达八小时,一些网民指出,移民局并没有开放更多柜台,来疏导缓慢和拥堵的通关情况。 不过,尚穆根相信运用科技能进一步舒缓和增加通关的效率。当局正研究长期性的措施,相信能在不久后对外公布详情。 此外,他也呼吁关卡职员在年末期间仍需保持警惕,保障通关来往旅客民众的安全。…

Concerns with laws to allow HDB to enter flats without owner's permission

By Ariffin Sha In a blogpost, Mr Khaw Boon Wan, the Minister…