21 Nov 2017
An illegal dumpsite in the Fair Park neighbourhood.
A SPATE of dengue cases hit Fair Park in Ipoh between late September and early October, with 15 residents contracting the illness.
On Nov 4, the neighbourhood’s status as a dengue hotspot was removed by the state Health Department.
However, undergrowth, especially those along drains, and uncollected garbage remain a nuisance.
A check by MetroPerak showed that undergrowth has clogged up the drain along Jalan Chang Yin Fatt, while rubbish bags were strewn at back alleys and road sides.
“Contractors used to cut the grass once every two weeks but I hardly see them lately.
“Another problem is that the contractors only cut the grass but did not remove them,” Chan said, adding that she and her husband have been living in Fair Park for about 45 years.
“When I asked them, they told me that the cleaning of the drains is the Ipoh City Council’s responsibility, not theirs,” she added.
Chan’s husband came down with dengue in the middle of October.
“He was the last resident from here to be diagnosed with dengue.
“It was fortunate that he did not have to be admitted but I had to take him to the hospital and health clinics for blood checks regularly,” she said, adding that her husband has since recovered.
“Since then, I’ve been spraying insect repellent, using mosquito repellent patches and coils in the whole house to repel the pests,” she added.
Another resident, who declined to be named, said fogging exercises were held every two weeks in October.
Undergrowth in and around the drains in Fair Park have not been cut in a while.
“Fogging is done after each report of a dengue case here.
“Last month, the fogging activities were quite frequent,” he said.
The resident also said he hoped the state health department would send its officers to conduct more random checks at housing areas, including those likely to become hotspots.
“Some drains will be clogged up, the undergrowth not cut and illegal dumpsites not cleared away,” he said.
“You can blame it on some of the residents that are not being civic-minded.
“Those who are responsible to clear the drains and undergrowth should also be blamed,” he added.
The resident also said that this was not the first time the neighbourhood was declared a dengue hotspot.
“About two or three years ago, one resident died from complications due to the illness,” he said.
Housewife Sharon Wong, 50, said her daughter, husband and her all came down with dengue early last month.
“We made complaints to the city council to cut the grass and clear the clogged drains but nothing was done.
“The drains were only cleaned and undergrowth cut about two to three weeks ago, after I made another complaint,” she said.
Wong said she was also told by a city council staff that mosquitoes would not breed on dirty water caused by clogged drains.
“But that does not mean that the drains should be left as it is,” she said.
Perak Health Committee chairman Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon said there were six dengue hotspots identified in the state, including Fair Park, between Oct 29 and Nov 4.
“All are no longer hotspots. The others included SMK Anderson with five cases, Kampung Datuk Ahmad Said Tambahan 2 (five), First Garden (two) and Kampung Sungai Rokam (two) in Ipoh.
“In Muallim, there were four cases in Taman Intan Setia,” he said.
Dr Mah also said that as of Nov 4 this year, there was a 57% increase in dengue cases compared to the corresponding period last year.
“The number of dengue cases now stands at 5,055, an increase by 1,837 cases, compared to 3,218 last year.
“There were also 11 deaths, compared to 10 in 2016,” he said.
Dr Mah said Kinta remained the district with the highest number of dengue cases with 2,997 recorded, with five deaths.
“This is a 75.5% increase from last year, whereby we recorded 1,708 cases,” he said, adding that other notable districts with an increase in dengue cases included Larut, Matang and Selama (535 cases with two deaths), Kuala Kangsar (281 cases and two deaths) and Kampar (248 cases and one death),” he added.
Other districts included Batang Padang (230 cases), Hulu Perak (157), Perak Tengah (80) and Muallim (81).
Dr Mah said districts with lower dengue incidence were Manjung, which saw a 39.6% drop of cases from 361 to 218, Hilir Perak (162 to 152) and Kerian (111 to 76).
“There was, however, one death in Kerian,” he said.
https://www.thestar.com.my/metro/metro-news/2017/11/21/dengue-risk-back-in-fair-park-neighbourhood-taken-off-hotspot-list-but-cleanliness-not-well-maintain/
