00:00Specialist medical officer at the Insect Vector Control Division, Dr. Pedram Lalla tells the
00:06Morning Edition that health officials are closely monitoring the Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus
00:12muskatoes, both known carriers of the dengue, chikungunya and zika viruses. Dr. Lalla says
00:19spraying alone is not a quick fix in tackling the spread of these viruses.
00:25Dr. Going around spraying incessantly with malathion is not the answer. Secondly,
00:29there's always damage to flora and fauna and bees and fish and so forth if you do over spray malathion
00:34and then you also run the risk of resistance. So again, trying to treat the end product does not
00:41actually make a difference. He notes that Trinidad and Tobago recorded its largest dengue outbreak
00:47last year 2025 and he warns that public vigilance remains critical. Dr. Lalla advises that water
00:56receptacles should be emptied regularly explaining that as many as 1,000 mosquito larvae can breed in
01:03a single bottle cork. He also outlines how the mosquitoes transmit disease. If it bites me and
01:10I have dengue and it comes to you next door and it bites you, then another mosquito will then bite
01:14you
01:14and then go to the next one and so on and so forth. So it's not that one mosquito is
01:18going to go around
01:19biting everybody, but if I get the disease and then it bites me and goes to you, you get the
01:24disease,
01:25then another mosquito is going to come and pick it up from you and spread it. Dr. Lalla says residents
01:30who suspect mosquito breeding in their communities are encouraged to contact the ministry, noting that
01:36officials can be dispatched to assess and treat affected areas. He is also urging members of the
01:43public to seek immediate medical attention if they experience warning signs such as persistent
01:49vomiting or bleeding from the mouth or nose, etc. Nicole M. Romany, TB6 News.
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