Dengue fever claims 18 lives

JAMBI, Jambi: At least 18 of the 1,442 people who were infected with dengue fever here in the months between January and October have died, a health official said yesterday, Antara reported.

Dr. H. Abdul Hamid Syam, head of the provincial office of the Ministry of Health, said that dengue fever cases had increased, particularly in slum areas during the rainy season.

In April and June preventative steps were taken by his office. Slums had been "fogged" (sprayed with chemicals) to kill the disease carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, and water supplies had been treated in an attempt to halt the increasing number of cases.

The biggest obstacle toward eradicating the disease is people's ignorance about the dangers of the disease, and about maintaining reasonable standards of hygiene, Syam said. (swe)