KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 — Most construction sites in the country have been found guilty of breeding Aedes mosquitoes.
The Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) found more than three-quarters of the 304 construction sites inspected between March and August to be either breeding grounds of the dengue-bearing Aedes mosquito or at risk of being so.
Works Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof said 236, or 77.6 per cent, of the sites were found to be in such a condition during inspections carried out by the board and the health department.
He said the health department and the Department of Occupational Safety and Health had also instructed 86 sites to clean up.
Fadillah said inspections at construction sites in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur hotspots during the same period found 165 out of 213, or 77.5 per cent, of sites to be potential breeding ground for Aedes mosquitoes.
He said the ministry set up an action committee on May 8 to ensure construction sites adhered to health and safety aspects.
Fadillah said this after visiting Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) yesterday which is currently being upgraded.
During the visit, officers also found the construction site at HKL at risk of being an Aedes breeding ground.
“The contractor was issued a seven-day stop-work order to ensure they clean up the site,” Fadillah said.
A total of 3,070 dengue cases were recorded nationwide between August 10 to 16, with Kelantan topping the table with 1,334 cases. Selangor, with 978 cases and one death, was second.
A total of 62,680 cases and 126 deaths have been recorded in the country — an increase of 264 per cent over the same period last year, where 1,275 cases and 34 deaths were recorded.
