Dengue cases near 6000 mark

The number of dengue cases in Singapore is quickly approaching the 6,000 mark, with over 5,800 cases reported so far this year.

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A worker fogs a housing estate in Singapore. (AFP/Roslan Rahman)

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SINGAPORE: The number of dengue cases in Singapore is quickly approaching the 6,000 mark, with over 5,800 cases reported so far this year.

Housing estates that are not dengue hotspots are determined to keep it that way.

Grassroots leader Kholyn Suarez, who is leading her troop of grassroots volunteers in the fight against Aedes mosquitoes, is telling residents to keep watch even though Sembawang Division is not a dengue hotspot.

Lending firepower to the effort is National Development Minister and Member of Parliament for Sembawang GRC, Khaw Boon Wan.

A door-to-door approach has been taken to remind people to rid their premises of conducive breeding conditions for Aedes mosquitoes.

“It’s one of the best solutions where we can also inform everyone what’s going on and what to do about it, especially nowadays we have a lot of dengue cases. So, one of the things maybe we can help is educate and inform them,” said Kholyn Suarez, grassroots leader from Sembawang Zone ‘F’ Residents’ Committee. 

Residents have also been given mosquito patches to drive away mosquitoes.

Two dengue cases have so far been reported in Sembawang Division’s Zone ‘F’.

Resident Deen Jehabaideen said: ”We have to do our part and it’s very important to let other people know, from their part, what they can do to avoid this dengue case.”

Sembawang Division’s grassroots leaders intend to cover as many of the 120-odd blocks of flats as possible to spread the message that dengue prevention is better than cure.

- CNA/ir

Dengue cases near 6000 mark