On Wednesday, Health Secretary Justina Langidrik said that since the outbreak started in mid-October, 567 cases of dengue fever have been confirmed in Majuro, the capital, which has been the hardest-hit island. This is an additional 61 cases over the past two weeks.
Four other islands have seen cases, but two have not reported a new case for two weeks. Ebeye, the Marshall Islands second urban center, now has 13 cases, and Enewetak spiked to 21 confirmed cases, with nine of those identified earlier this week largely as a result of people traveling from Majuro against the advice of the Ministry of Health.
Mosquito spraying teams have sprayed hundreds of homes, churches and government buildings in Majuro and Ebeye, reducing the population of mosquitoes that carry dengue fever.
As an indication in the drop in cases, Langidrik said as of Wednesday there are no people in the “dengue fever room” at Majuro Hospital.
Because of the jump in cases at Enewetak, the government’s patrol vessel “Lomor” was dispatched to Enewetak last week carrying teams from Ministry of Health, Environmental Protection Authority and Ministry of Public Works that will provide a combination of mosquito spraying, treatment and other prevention activity.
Secretary Langidrik said that in addition to help from the U.S. and Taiwan governments, the World Health Organization, and the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Hawaii, the Ministry of Health has spent nearly $200,000 of its own funds to ensure medical supplies have been available during the dengue outbreak.
