Ensure work places free of Aedes breeding ground - NIOSH

The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has urged employers and workers to ensure that their work environments are free of breeding grounds for the Aedes mosquito.

In a statement issued Thursday, NIOSH president Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said special attention should be given to construction sites to ensure the cleanliness of the work area.

"It is the responsibility of the contractor at the site as well as their workers to ensure the cleanliness of the workplace and discard all objects such as empty containers, tins, tyres and others which could become breeding places for the Aedes mosquito," he said.

Lee said NIOSH fully supported the two month anti-Aedes campaign (Kempen Perang Aedes Habis-Habisan) announced by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam on Wednesday.

From January till yesterday, 49,948 dengue cases were reported throughout the country, an increase of 35,542 cases or 247 percent compared to the 14,406 cases during the same period last year.

Meanwhile, 94 deaths due to dengue had been reported, an increase of 236 percent compared to 28 for the same period last year.