Subang Jaya City Council (MBSJ) has roped in neighbouring councils to search and destroy mosquito breeding grounds due to a hike in dengue cases.
MBSJ Health Department senior assistant director Dr Nurnawwar Arpaaii said Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) and Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) had joined its fight against dengue.
MBSJ health inspectors checking for mosquito breeding sites at a community garden outside Desaminium Rimba in Taman Lestari Perdana.
“All of us work as a team in the field from 5am to 11am on weekends. Fogging is also carried out,” she said.
Dengue cases in Subang Jaya went up by almost 205.2% as on March 4 compared to the same period last year.
A weekly average of 155 confirmed dengue cases have been reported in Subang Jaya since the start of the year.
As of March 4, a total of 1,401 cases have been recorded in Subang Jaya. There are no fatalities.
Dr Nurnawwar said there were 459 dengue cases in the corresponding period last year.
For the whole of last year, Subang Jaya recorded 4,599 confirmed dengue cases with two deaths.
“We are already seeing a rise in the number of confirmed dengue cases within the first nine weeks of the year,” said Dr Nurnawwar.
She said the department was monitoring two hotspots – Desaminium Rimba Apartments in Taman Lestari Perdana which had 39 cases and SS15/2 with 25 cases.
“MBSJ urges everyone to be vigilant. Remove stagnant water after a thunderstorm or even a short drizzle to prevent mosquitoes from breeding.
“Hot weather with intermittent rain has led to an increase in the Aedes mosquito population,” she said.
She urged residents to keep their surroundings clean and dispose of empty bottles, cans and boxes into covered rubbish bins.
“We want civic consciousness to become a social norm,” she added.
Dr Nurnawwar said most hotspots were in residential areas, prompting health inspectors to work with zone councillors and residents’ representative council, residents associations and Rukun Tetangga to educate residents on dengue prevention.
“Clogged drains cause water to stagnate, resulting in mosquito breeding sites,” she said, advising people to spend 10 minutes a week to destroy potential sites.
“Source reduction is the most effective way to stop dengue from spreading,” she added.
A dengue hotspot refers to a localised epidemic that is more than 30 days from the date it started.
