Efforts to stop virus stepped up; no new cases
Straits Times 21 Jan 08;
THE authorities are stepping up efforts to destroy mosquito breeding grounds in Little India in a bid to prevent a new, dengue-like disease from securing a foothold here.
Workers are 'doing whatever they need to do' to remove pools of stagnant water in the wake of an outbreak of chikungunya fever, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim said yesterday.
'We already have a dengue challenge. We do not want another challenge on the public health front. So, we want to try and contain this as soon as possible,' he said.
Eight people have tested positive for chikungunya since last Monday. All the cases were reported around the Clive Street area in the heart of Little India.
No new cases have surfaced in the past two days.
The virus, which is endemic in neighbouring countries like Indonesia, is spread by the Aedes mosquito.
It is rarely fatal, although its symptoms are similar to those of dengue, such as joint pain, chills and nausea.
The National Environment Agency is currently working with medical authorities and property owners in Little India to ensure the area is kept free of standing water, said Dr Yaacob.
'We are confident that, given the current level of effort we've put in place, we can get this under control.'
Health officials learnt important lessons in the dengue outbreak of 2005, Singapore's worst, said Dr Yaacob.
Procedures to contain mosquito-borne illnesses are 'working very, very well,' he said.
Dr Yaacob asked residents across the island to check their households for potential breeding sites.
'If Singaporeans keep their place clean and free of stagnant water, we will not have this problem,' he said.
He also said more measures to combat the spread of the chikungunya virus will be discussed in Parliament this year.
The Ministry of Health was first notified of chikungunya by a general practitioner last Monday when a 27-year-old Bangladeshi patient tested positive for the disease.
Soon, more bite to dengue fight
Leong Wee Keat, Today Online 21 Jan 08;
As the authorities grapple with the latest mosquito-borne disease, chikungunya fever, they have not forgotten about the other, perennial virus: Dengue.
Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim said his ministry would announce in Parliament in March new measures to ensure the number of dengue cases head south for good.
While he did not elaborate, Today understands that enforcement is going to be more stringent, and more stakeholders would be roped in to curb the spread of the virus.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) is likely to come down harder on offenders, said MP Lim Wee Kiak, a member of the government parliamentary committee (GPC) for national development and environment.
While the GPC has not been briefed yet on the ministry's plans, Dr Lim thinks the authorities may no longer warn offenders before issuing a fine.
NEA has consistently pointed to homes as the weak link. The first-time fine for mosquito breeding in residential premises is $100. Commercial operators, for example, of construction worksites, face heavier fines of up to $5,000 for the first offence.
These laws were last updated in 2002, and Major (Ret) G Surajan, who was part of the Dengue Task Force when he served as president of the Singapore Pest Management Association from 2004 to 2006, thinks the fines should be raised to get the message to hit home.
"When their pockets are hit, people will realise it is serious," he told Today.
While most people are doing their bit to stop mosquito breeding, Dr Amy Khor, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Environment and Water Resources, told Today that safeguards must be put in place to guard against a small minority.
"We still have a lot of lapses … individuals who do not view it as a serious problem - the bo chup (don't care) attitude. All you need is a minority," she said.
Dr Yaacob, who spoke to reporters yesterday after a community event, said the ministry's fight against dengue was to ensure that Singapore "can maintain our public health standards at a very, very high level".
But he does not think there is cause for alarm about the eight cases of chikungunya fever detected last week at Clive Street in Little India, as the NEA's standard operating procedures are tighter after the 2005 dengue epidemic. And they will be tightened further, he said.
"We will continue to monitor this very, very closely until we are satisfied," he said, adding that there were no new infections.
There were 10 cases of the mosquito-borne, dengue-like illness here last year, but none were locally
transmitted, unlike the cases last week.
Dr Lim said this latest outbreak is also of concern because previous cases were sporadic. "This is the first time we had a cluster," he said. "There's a real possibility the chikungunya virus may, from sporadic, become endemic. It could potentially become a second problem for us if left unchecked."
As of yesterday, the NEA had inspected 2,300 premises and had widened its search for mosquito breeding - from the usual 150m radius for dengue - to areas bounded by Sungei Road, Serangoon Road, Lavender Road and Jalan Besar.
Besides conducting checks on the ground, the NEA will hold discussions today with agencies such as the Land Transport Authority and the Urban Redevelopment Authority to explore ways to control the spread of the virus.
