Fogging for mosquitoes in Region Six has been intensified after residents of New Amsterdam and surrounding communities were affected by swarms of the insect during daylight hours.
Regional Health Officer, Jevaughn Stephens told GINA that fogging would be carried out five days per week. He said fogging started on February 02, along with the distribution of medicated mosquito nets, but because of the lack of resources, all the areas could not be fogged.
Stephens said that a team from the Ministry of Public Health’s Vector Control Services has been sent to the Region to continue the fogging exercise, “We have 10 machines and five vehicles which will be fogging in all the problematic areas. The aim is to ensure over a period of time, that we touch the entire Region so as to keep the mosquitoes down. While we speak of those mosquitoes, we don’t want persons to feel that it’s the fogging alone, we want to ask persons to clean your surroundings, front and back drains, ensure you store water properly,” Stephens said.
The Regional Health Officer said that other measures will be put in place to deal with the mosquitoes.
“We had 5000 treated nets distributed across the region through the maternity unit here at the New Amsterdam Hospital and we sent to the health centres across the region. We have 26 health centres across the Region. So we sent to the health centres because they will be the first persons to interact with pregnant mothers. So from the time you know you are pregnant you go to the health centre and you must be issued with this net,” Stephens said.
Treated mosquito nets are also being shared in the Orealla/Siparuta communities. There has been one reported confirmed case of Zika in Region Six.
