STAFF CORRESPONDENT

At least five dengue patients died while 490 others were hospitalised in the 24 hours till 8:00am yesterday.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services, of the deaths, two each were reported from Dhaka South City Corporation and Mymensingh division, while one was reported from Dhaka North City Corporation.

With the new deaths and cases this year, the total number of deaths rose to 391, while total cases stands at 96,067.

Currently, 1,840 dengue patients are undergoing treatment at different hospitals across the country.

Entomologist Prof Kabirul Bashar of Jahangirnagar University said dengue will decrease only slightly in December, with a significant decline unlikely before late January.

“The immediate emergency is that in Dhaka’s multistorey buildings, Aedes mosquitoes are breeding in basements. This is not linked to rainfall. These areas must be brought under control immediately,” he said.

Entomologist GM Saifur Rahman said, “Only the number of patients will slowly decrease,” cautioning that the Culex mosquito population is rising and could cause new public health problems by January or February.