HÀ NỘI — The dengue fever epidemic in Hà Nội may peak for the second time this year in October and November, experts have warned.

The city’s leaders and doctors on Tuesday held an online meeting with leaders of 30 localities in the city on dengue fever prevention.

Although there has been a decrease in the number of new dengue fever patients in the last six weeks, the average number of new dengue patients remains high at 230 per day, Dr Hoàng Đức Hạnh, deputy director of the Hà Nội Department of Health, said.

"It is as high as the figure at the end of July,” he added.

“Since the current change in weather can prompt the breeding of mosquitoes, it is likely that the epidemic will reach its second peak in either October or November if not treated properly,” he said.

The process of eliminating mosquito larvae and spraying chemicals to kill mosquitoes has not been done properly in the outer city’s districts of Mỹ Đức, Gia Lâm, Tây Hồ and Long Biên, as well as Thanh Oai and Hà Đông, and in the inner city’s districts of Ba Đình and Hoàn Kiếm, according to reports from the city’s inspectors.

Ngô Văn Quý, vice chairman of the Hà Nội People’s Committee, requested these localities to review their dengue fever prevention process and propose solutions to address shortcomings at the earliest.

Focus should be on spraying chemicals to kill mosquitoes and cleaning the environment to get rid of mosquito larvae -- the two major measures to prevent dengue fever, he said.

In addition, local authorities should increase the inspection of residents’ application of these measures to gain and learn from practical experience, he added.

“The epidemic should be basically controlled in the city by next month,” he said. — VNS