Dengue kills 1 more after 5 days as toll hits 24

The last time fatality from the disease was recorded on Apr 13

Dengue has claimed another life in Bangladesh five days after the last fatality was reported.

The death toll from the mosquito-borne disease increased to 24 with the one death reported in Barishal in the daily count published by the Directorate General of Health Services on Thursday.

Hospitals in Bangladesh admitted 23 new dengue patients in a day, with six in Dhaka, taking the tally of infections since Jan 1 to 1,939 after the worst outbreak last year.

In the morning, 47 dengue patients were receiving treatment in hospitals in Dhaka. The number was 49 outside the capital.

In 2023, Bangladesh recorded 321,179 hospitalisations and 1,705 deaths from the viral disease and the outbreak has continued this year.

Rising temperatures, along with a lack of effective measures to kill the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the known carrier of the virus, are seen as the reasons behind the deadliest outbreak last year.

Experts say dengue may affect Bangladesh throughout the year from now on, not just in monsoon, if the authorities do not move to prevent the disease.