Sri Lanka records 50 dengue deaths as July cases exceed 18,000

Fifty people have died from dengue in Sri Lanka this year, while more than 18,000 cases were reported in July alone, health officials said.

The country has recorded about 74,500 dengue cases so far this year. The case fatality rate stands at 0.07 per cent.

Gampaha and Colombo districts have reported the highest numbers of infections.

Of the 50 people who died, 35 were women and 15 were men. Five of the victims were children under the age of 15.

Health authorities said they would continue special dengue-control programmes in high-risk areas.

During an inspection programme launched on Thursday, officials examined 1,327 premises and identified 314 locations containing potential mosquito-breeding sites.

Larvae of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, the two mosquito species that transmit dengue, were found at several premises.

Officials took immediate preventive measures at 223 premises, issued warning notices to the owners of 329 properties and initiated legal action against 146 property owners.

The Health Ministry will also conduct fogging at schools being used as examination centres ahead of the Advanced Level examination.

Officials said students would spend several hours at examination centres and could face an increased risk of exposure to infected mosquitoes. Local health authorities will remove mosquito-breeding sites and carry out fogging before the examinations begin.