Dengue fever strikes Dili

Dengue fever strikes Dili

DILI, East Timor: Fifteen people have been hospitalized in an
outbreak of dengue fever in the East Timorese capital, a local
health official said yesterday.

Chief of the city health office, Rustam S. Pakaya, said the
local government has embarked on a campaign aimed at informing
residents on how to avoid the disease.

"I have asked all village health centers to bring the epidemic
under control before it's too late," he was quoted as saying by
the Antara news agency. Most of the 15 cases occurred in the
city's eastern suburb, he said.

He denied local press reports that up to 14 people, mostly
children, have died from the disease, which is spread by aedes
aegepty mosquitos. (rms)