Dengue

Minister for Health, Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete said there were 1,747 dengue fever cases with five deaths.

He said there had also been 99 cases of typhoid with one death.

The minister said his ministry was positioning itself to combat the spread of such disease.

Waqainabete said natural disasters increased the intensity of the diseases and also highlighted that there were 3,019 cases of diarrhoeal disease.

Photo file      

The Health Coordinator, Sandrine Benjimen said, “These explain dengue symptoms and when to get treatment. They also tell people how they can help stop the spread of dengue. Along with other activities, disseminating information is an important part of changing people’s behaviour.” 

In December 2016, the local Ministry of Health established a National Dengue Task Force (NDTF) and began an Emergency Rapid Response to tackle the outbreak.

The Vanuatu Red Cross website says the plans included communicating to the public about ways to prevent and treat dengue fever.

More than 150 people on the island of Hawaii have so far contracted the mosquito borne virus and more cases are expected.

Hawaii's disease outbreak control centre says it is still safe to travel to the Big Island.