Most dengue fever outbreaks are not slowing down in the Pacific but there are hopes this will change as the weather gets colder and drier.
Samoa’s director general of health Aiono Dr Alec Ekeroma said the country saw 56 new cases of the viral infection last week, which is close to a third of the confirmed cases since January.
Samoa, Fiji, Tonga and the Cook Islands have all declared dengue outbreaks. All countries apart from the Cook Islands have recorded at least one death.
Aiono said Samoa’s Ministry of Health is encouraging people to stamp out breeding grounds rather than using chemicals.
“The chemicals [are] expensive and it’s not as effective as we would like it to be, so it’s better actually that we engage the community to destroy breeding sites,” Aiono said.
He said health care staff are managing.