Health officials say they will launch a major new vector eradication campaign, in light of an increase in chikungunya cases on the island
Chief Medical Officer Dr. Merlin Frederick says while there have been five confirmed cases of the virus,health authorities are bracing for an increase in the number of cases.
The campaign will be preceded by a stakeholders meeting on May 13, at which representatives of the Ministry of Heath, the St Lucia Solid Waste Management Authority, the St Lucia Air and Seaports Authority and non-government organizations will fine tune the plan.
Chikungunya first made itself known in the Caribbean last December, when it showed up on St. Martin. More than 4,108 cases have been reported in 14 countries across the Caribbean as of the end of April.
Chikungunya has been confirmed in Anguilla, Aruba, Virgin Islands, Dominica, the Dominican Republican, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, St. Barthelemy, St Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and in Dutch and French St. Martin.
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St. Lucia bracing for more Chikungunya cases
