Channel NewsAsia 20 Jan 08;
SINGAPORE: The National Environment Agency (NEA) said it will step up efforts to keep the chikungunya fever situation in control although there has been no new case in the past three days.
The news that eight people in the Clive Street area came down with chikungunya fever surfaced on Thursday. Since then, the authorities have tightened checks, deploying 50 officers to comb the area for mosquito breeding sites every day, compared to 13 officers usually.
Chikungunya fever is an acute viral disease, similar to dengue fever. It is also transmitted via infected aedes mosquitoes.
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Dr Yaacob Ibrahim said, "So far, no new cases have surfaced. It doesn't mean there are none, but we will continue to monitor this very very closely until we are satisfied. The GPs (general practitioners) and us are working very well. The minute they detected something, blood samples were sent immediately for analysis. So it (showed) that what we have put (on) the ground is working very very well."
Dr Yaacob said data so far showed that chikungunya is not fatal and has not taken root in Singapore.
But he warned against complacency. "You must keep your place clean, free of stagnant water."
Besides conducting checks on the ground, the NEA will also hold discussions with multiple agencies such as the Land Transport Authority and the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Monday to explore ways to control the spread of the virus.
Dr Yaacob also revealed that new measures to control the number of dengue cases will be announced during this year's Budget Debate. - CNA/ac
