PLAGUES & PESTILENCES: Escalation In Mosquito-Borne Diseases Continue - Hawaii's Governor David Ige Declares STATE OF EMERGENCY To Fight Zika Virus And Dengue Fever Outbreak!

© Jim Gathany / Reuters

February 13, 2016 - HAWAII - Hawaii has declared a state of emergency in a move to fight and prevent mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever and the Zika virus, which the state’s governor called a threat to public health and welfare.

“We are doing everything we can to be prepared, to be proactive, to prevent vector-borne diseases here in Hawaii,” Gov. David Ige said in a proclamation he signed Friday.

So far, Hawaii has not seen cases of the Zika virus transmission, but it is on standby following a decision by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to put emergency centers on a Level 1 alert last week.

But there is an ongoing outbreak of dengue fever at Big Island, where there were more than 250 confirmed cases. One of the major concerns now is that mosquitoes that can carry dengue fever also can carry the Zika virus, which potentially puts the island at risk.

There are also flights between American Samoa, one of the Pacific islands affected by a Zika outbreak, and Hawaii.

Tourists and locals watch the sunset from White Sands Beach Park in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, January 31, 2016. © Canice Leung / Reuters

“Hawaii Emergency Management Agency will be working with all the county mayors and the county civil defense coordinators to ensure that statewide we are ahead of the game and proactive in responding to vector-borne diseases,” the governor said.

The emergency proclamation means that Hawaii will have access to the Major Disaster Fund, granting it an option to acquire more funds to control outbreaks and waive certain laws and regulations if necessary.

"One of the things that this emergency declaration from the governor will allow us to do is that we can in fact enforce that we will come and take care of mosquitoes on a property that someone is refusing, because it is a public health emergency,” Virginia Pressler, director of the Department of Health said, AP reported.

In particular the authorities would be able to use insecticides on private property, regardless of an owner’s objection.

According to Pressler, understaffed due to financial problems, the state’s health regulator is now searching to hire more medical workers and scientists with the newly released funds from the governor.

Gov. Ige has said the state will begin to survey the community to verify the particular mosquito species and determine their locations. Then it will work out and implement plans for their “management, eradication and treatment,” he said. - Hawaii.

PLAGUES & PESTILENCES: Dengue Fever Outbreak On Hawaii's Big Island - State Of Emergency Declared!

February 9, 2016 - BIG ISLAND, HAWAII - The mayor of Hawaii's Big Island declared a state of emergency on Monday to deal with a growing outbreak of dengue fever, spread by infected mosquitoes, with 250 cases confirmed over the past four months.

As a result of Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi's order people on the Big Island will be allowed to resume disposing of old tires in landfills, since tires which are left lying around are a known breeding spot for mosquitoes.

There have been 250 confirmed cases of dengue fever on the island since Oct. 29, making it the largest outbreak in the state since the 1940s, according to the mayor's declaration and Hawaii health officials.

Dengue fever causes flu-like symptoms and can develop into the deadly dengue hemorrhagic fever.

Hawaii Governor David Ige said in a statement he supported the efforts on the Big Island but would not issue a statewide emergency declaration unless the outbreak spread to other islands or expanded to include other diseases, such as the Zika virus.

Zika is spreading rapidly in South and Central America and the Caribbean and has been linked to severe birth defects in Brazil.


WATCH: Dengue Fever Press Conference.

Last month, a baby born with brain damage at a hospital in Oahu, Hawaii, was apparently the first case of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in a birth on U.S. soil, health officials said.

Dengue is not endemic to Hawaii but has occasionally spread after being imported by infected travelers. The outbreak on the Big Island is the first cluster of locally-acquired dengue fever since a 2011 outbreak on Oahu, the Hawaii Department of Health said. - Yahoo.

PLAGUES & PESTILENCES: Big Island Dengue Fever Outbreak Count Rises To 136 - CDC!

Red pins represent confirmed cases of dengue fever, yellow pind represent potential dengue fever cases under investigation and blue pins
represent cases that turned out to be negative. Hawai'i County Civil Defense map, as of Dec. 4.

December 5, 2015 - BIG ISLAND, HAWAI'I - As the work week closes out, an additional six cases of confirmed dengue fever on the Big Island have been added to the count by the Hawai’i Department of Health.

Count numbers trickled in throughout the week, with an overall increase of 24 cases from 112 to 136 between Monday and Friday.

Throughout the duration of the week, an additional 107 cases of potential dengue were excluded as the result of negative dengue test results and/or the lack of meeting case criteria.

Total numbers include 17 visitors infected by the dengue virus and 30 individuals identified by the DOH as “children” or those who are under the age of 18.

County and State officials wrapped up their final public meeting Thursday in a second wave of community focused events that discussed the current dengue outbreak and prevention tips.

Hawai’i County Civil Defense Administrator and Incident Commander Darryl Oliveira said Thursday that the second group of meetings was intended to provide more thorough coverage of the various communities throughout the island.

Additional meetings may be scheduled in the future, based on community need, resource availability, and developments in the dengue outbreak.

On Friday, the Big Island Visitors Bureau held a panel at their annual meeting in Kona, providing an oppotunity for officials to speak to tourism industry representatives about the current outbreak and mitigation methods.

Civil Defense released an updated map, indicating specific areas of confirmed cases of dengue. The county map provides pinpointed information regarding areas of “concern,” compared to the DOH’s areas map with general areas marked.

The map released Friday (above) includes pin points of confirmed cases (orange), suspected cases (yellow), and negative cases (blue and white) of dengue fever. A high number of confirmed cases can be seen along the west coast of the Big Island, as well as in the Hilo and Puna areas.

Civil Defense notes that the map should not exclude areas on the Big Island from mosquito control measures.

Consistent with operations performed over most of the week, spraying operations were being conducted in the South Kona and Puna areas on Friday as a preventative measure towards eliminating mosquito populations.

Dr. Lyle Peterson, Director of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, has been on-island since Wednesday, per request of the county and state. He will return to the mainland Friday evening.

Ryan Hemme, CDC entomologist, and Albert Felix, CDC entomology assistant, will remain on the Big Island over the next two weeks and they assist in the evaluation of the mosquitoes causing the dengue outbreak, conduct training for government officials in the handling of dengue, and help to assess control efforts.

On Thursday, Dr. Peterson said he was “impressed” with the state and county’s coordination in response.

Symptoms of dengue fever include fever, joint or muscle paints, headache or pain behind the eyes, and rash.

Those interesting in obtaining general information about the current Big Island dengue fever investigation should call 2-1-1 and talk with Aloha United Way.

Anyone who thinks they may have contracted dengue fever on the Big Island should call 933-0912 if they’re located in East Hawai’i or 322-4877 in West Hawai’i. If an individual is currently ill and worried that they may have contracted dengue fever, they should contact their primary care physician.

Mosquito concerns should be reported to 974-6010 in East Hawai’i or 322-1513 in West Hawai’i.

For more information, visit the DOH website.


WATCH: The CDC visits the Big Island.

- BIN.

 

PLAGUES & PESTILENCES: Deadly Yellow Fever Mosquito Resurfaces In California - Not Seen Since The 1970s!

April 14, 2014 - SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES - A deadly mosquito that hasn’t been seen in the Bay Area since the 70s has been detected in San Mateo County.

Yellow Fever Mosquito, or aedes egypti.

It’s called aedes aegypti and it was found last January in the Holy Cross cemetary in Menlo Park.

It’s the mosquito that spreads yellow fever, chicken fever, the dengue fever and other diseases. Officials call it “one of the worst most effective vectors of disease around the world.”

The mosquito is tiny and its bite is hardly noticeable. Unlike other mosquitos, it bites during the day.

Officials are asking homeowners in the area to check their yards for containers of standing water, including birth baths, so it can be eradicated quickly. - CBS San Francisco.

GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS: Drought-Hit Malaysian State Rations Water - High Temperatures And Bone Dry Conditions Have Left Reservoirs At "Critical Levels"!

February 27, 2014 - MALAYSIA - Authorities began rationing water to thousands of households in Malaysia's most populous state Tuesday, as a dry spell depletes reservoirs across a country normally known for its steady tropical downpours.

Norlizan, 40, (2nd R) queues to collect water from a tank in Balakong, outside Kuala Lumpur on February 25, 2014.
Authorities began rationing water to thousands of households in Malaysia's most populous state on February 25, as a
dry spell depletes reservoirs across a country normally known for its steady tropical downpours. Photo courtesy AFP.

Much of Malaysia has been under bone-dry conditions for a month and high temperatures have left some reservoirs at "critical" levels, sparking an increase in bushfires and leading to protests in at least one hard-hit community near the capital Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia does tend to experience dry weather early in the year, but the current dry spell has been unusually long.

The lack of significant rainfall has caused increasing alarm, particularly in the state of Selangor, which surrounds Kuala Lumpur, and adjacent areas, as meteorologists have warned the dry patch could last another month.

Selangor is Malaysia's most populous state and its economic and industrial hub.

Water rationing in the state will affect an estimated 60,000 households, according to the Selangor's private water company.

A Selangor local government spokeswoman said the state was reducing the flow to four water treatment plants "until the weather improves".

"The reduction of water will start today," she told AFP. "What we need now is the rain."

Authorities have said planes are on standby to conduct cloud-seeding, but the spokeswoman said the effort has been hampered by inadequate cloud formation.

Residents in the Selangor town of Balakong have complained for weeks about taps running dry and last week about 200 residents staged a protest calling on authorities to provide water, according to reports.

"We spend over 20 ringgit ($6) a week at the dhobi now," said housewife Norizan Nasim, using the local name for someone who washes people's clothes.

"But what can we do, we can't afford to shift from here," added Nasim, who is currently travelling an hour each day to fetch water from a river.

The state of Negeri Sembilan, adjacent to Selangor, last week declared a water crisis, mobilising to supply treated water to thousands of households.

The hot spell has also contributed to more cases of dengue fever as it speeds up the life cycle of the aedes mosquito that carries the virus and enhances replication of the pathogen, experts say.

Deaths from the flu-like illness have risen to 25 this year, compared with just eight in the same period last year, according to the latest Health Ministry figures.

The number of cases has also quadrupled to some 14,000 so far this year. The World Health Organisation calls dengue one of the fastest-growing viral threats globally, especially in the tropics. - Space Daily.