Sri Lanka battles severe dengue fever outbreak, with over 44K cases and 28 deaths this year

By
admin
-
0
3

COLOMBO, June 19 — Sri Lanka is battling the worst outbreak of mosquito-borne dengue fever in years, with more than 44,000 cases and 28 ​deaths recorded since January, an official said on Friday, putting ‌public hospitals under strain.

Dengue is common during Sri Lanka’s monsoon season, but unplanned urbanization coupled with damage caused by Cyclone Ditwah, which hit the island nation in late November, ​has worsened the outbreak this year, authorities said.

The number of dengue ​cases nearly doubled from 5,651 in April to 10,638 in ⁠the first two weeks of June, data from the National Dengue Control ​Unit (NDCU) showed.

A worker from the Medical Officer of Health (MOH) department fumigates a residential area during a mosquito control program in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Friday, June 19, 2026.  REUTERS
Workers from the Medical Officer of Health (MOH) department inspect and collect evidence at a house during a dengue prevention program in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on June 19, 2026 REUTERS
The National Hospital of Sri Lanka in Colombo, Sri Lanka, is pictured on June 19, 2026.  REUTERS

“We noticed this increase after the cyclone,” Dr. Prashila Samaraweera, consultant community ​physician and NDCU spokesperson, told Reuters.

“A lot of debris was in our environment, so we noticed a lot of mosquito breeding places, and our entomological indices were high ​from that time.”

With 51,000 cases recorded in the whole of last year, ​the rate of infections has risen sharply, Dr. Samaraweera said.

Infections are likely to increase ‌for ⁠at least two more weeks before tapering off, she added.

Surge could put health facilities under severe strain

A further uptick in patient numbers could put public hospitals under severe strain, Sri Lanka’s health minister Nalinda Jayatissa warned on ​Thursday.

More than half ​the cases are ⁠from the western region of the country, including 9,429 cases from commercial capital Colombo.

Eight other districts have reported ​more than 2,000 patients since the start of the ​year.

A worker from the Medical Officer of Health (MOH) department sprays insecticide to kill mosquitoes during a mosquito control program in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on June 19, 2026. REUTERS

The 28 ⁠deaths include five children.

Patient numbers for this year could end up matching the last major outbreak in 2019, authorities have warned, when Sri Lanka recorded over ⁠105,000 ​dengue patients.

Schools, homes, construction sites, and public ​buildings are being cleaned up during a special program launched by Sri Lanka’s health authorities and ​other public officials until next Monday.

Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: nypost.com

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR