Mayor declares war on dengue

SEMARANG, Central Java: Semarang Mayor Sukawi Sutarip called for more support on Monday from 177 subdistrict heads in the fight against dengue fever as 24 children have died because of the illness this year.

The 24 fatalities so far this year, six of whom have died in the last two weeks, was a much higher number than the seven fatalities recorded last year.

"I ask all heads of subdistricts in Semarang to observe all houses and schools in their neighborhoods. On Tuesday morning, all students will take part in an effort to clean their schools to rid them of mosquitoes," Sukawi said.

He compared the rapid spread of dengue fever in the city to a massive fire.

"We should all work to 'extinguish' dengue fever. Tomorrow there will be a massive fogging effort, so in the coming days, we all should take part in preventing the rapid spread of the disease," he said.

Semarang recorded the highest number of dengue fever incidents in Central Java province with 118 of its 177 subdistricts recording cases of the fever. -- JP