Singapore, 2 September 2020 – As of 1 September 2020, there have been 27,663 reported dengue cases this year. There were 1,155 cases reported last week, a drop of 133 from the week before. Whilst this is more than 600 cases below the peak weekly case number of 1,792 this year, the weekly number of dengue cases remains high, and we are still in the midst of the traditional peak dengue season. Urgent community action to carry out vector control measures, and individuals taking proactive steps to protect against dengue, are thus critical. The National Environment Agency (NEA) has worked with Town Councils to step up dengue prevention efforts in an intensive two-week islandwide exercise in July, to heighten awareness and sustain a momentum of community action to fight dengue. In the month of August, NEA has detected about 50 per cent less Aedes mosquito breeding in Town Council-managed areas compared to in July this year, and these intensive dengue prevention efforts with Town Councils will continue.

 

 

2           NEA worked with all Town Councils to step up dengue prevention efforts in an intensive two-week islandwide exercise in July, to heighten awareness and sustain a momentum of community action to fight dengue. Inspections and vector control operations in common areas were stepped up, to ensure that drains were well maintained, common areas were kept litter-free, and stagnant water was removed or treated. Where required, NEA also worked with Town Councils to coordinate chemical treatment, such as fogging, misting and larviciding, to bring down the mosquito population in dengue cluster areas.

 

3            During these two weeks, NEA additionally worked closely with Grassroots Advisers and Leaders and community volunteers, to reach out to more residents, to advise them to get rid of mosquito breeding habitats at home. In particular, the outreach emphasised to residents living in dengue cluster areas the importance of taking simple steps to protect themselves against mosquito bites, including applying mosquito repellent regularly, wearing long-sleeve tops and long pants, and spraying insecticide in dark corners around the home, such as behind curtains and under beds. Such protective measures are important given the surge in dengue cases, high mosquito population, and with more people working from home, which also means more blood meals for the day-biting dengue vector, the Aedes mosquito.  

 

4           Town Councils have responded with intensified vector control efforts, especially in dengue cluster areas. The number of clusters with drain cleaning activities has doubled in the month of August, compared to in July, with 213 clusters covered in August alone. Similarly, the number of coordinated fogging activities has also doubled in the same time period, with 37 such activities in August. As part of inspections in dengue clusters, NEA has detected about 50 per cent less Aedes mosquito breeding habitats in Town Council-managed areas in August compared to in July. As the number of dengue cases is still high and we are still in the midst of the traditional dengue season, NEA is working with Town Councils to continue with the momentum of these intensive dengue prevention efforts. 

 

5         Mr Desmond Tan, Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment, said, “Community-led efforts are critical in protecting our neighbourhoods from dengue. Following the mobilisation of all Town Councils, as well as Grassroots Advisers and Leaders, to step up dengue prevention efforts around HDB neighbourhoods in the intensive two-week vector control exercise, we have seen some encouraging initial results, with a reduction in Aedes mosquito breeding in August compared to in July. I hope Town Councils and community leaders will sustain this momentum to break the dengue transmission chain, and bring the dengue situation under control. NEA will continue to work closely with stakeholders in our fight against dengue.”

 

 

• 202-case cluster at Leicester Road

• 180-case cluster at Bartley Road 

• 162-case cluster at Dakota Crescent

• 161-case cluster at Cassia Crescent

• 132-case cluster at Adis Road

• 118- case cluster at Braddell Road

• 86-case cluster at Jalan Bunga Rampai

• 73-case cluster at Lorong 7 Toa Payoh

• 69-case cluster at Bristol Road

• 67-case cluster at Jalan Jarak

• 62-case cluster at Chuan Close 

 

7         Overall, we have closed about 85 per cent, or 2,052 of 2,392, of the dengue clusters notified, since the start of this year. We have also observed a slower rate of disease transmission at some of the larger dengue clusters, such as the 243-case cluster at Brighton Crescent, with an average of less than one case reported per day in the past two weeks.

 

8        However, the total number of dengue clusters islandwide remains high. There are still large dengue clusters located at Aljunied Road / Geylang Road / Geylang East Avenue 1 and 2, Arnasalam Chetty Road / Kim Yam Road, Bukit Panjang Ring Road, Arthur Road and  Aljunied Road / Geylang Road / Guillemard Road, where intensive vector control operations are ongoing (refer to Annex A for information on the top five largest dengue clusters). To combat these large dengue clusters, NEA has been working intensively with key stakeholders from various Government agencies in the Inter-Agency Dengue Task Force (IADTF), including Town Councils, on sustained environmental management efforts during this traditional peak dengue period. 

 

 

9        In addition to ongoing islandwide vector control efforts, NEA has continued with its intensified dengue inspection and outreach efforts, and has conducted more than 638,000 inspections islandwide between January to August this year [1] . NEA is also working with other partners such as the Ministry of Education, People’s Association, Early Childhood Development Agency, Ministry of Health / Agency for Integrated Care, Ministry of Manpower and National Parks Board, to distribute mosquito repellent and educational materials to residents in dengue cluster areas. As of 1 September 2020, more than 215,000 bottles of mosquito repellent have been distributed to households in active dengue cluster areas, through house visits. NEA staff and our volunteers have also been deployed every weekend since end-June to engage residents at large dengue cluster areas, reaching out to over 90,000 people. These efforts will continue at other large dengue cluster areas over the upcoming weekends. Engagement efforts have also been supported by mass publicity on TV, print, out-of-home and online platforms, as well as through SMS blasts, to urge residents to protect themselves from the risk of being bitten by mosquitoes and to Do the Mozzie Wipeout regularly.