SHAH ALAM: Alarmed by the spike in the number of dengue cases in Jalan Kubah, Bukit Jelutong, a group of residents took matters into their own hands and have been organising an annual gotong-royong to eliminate Aedes breeding grounds.
The number of dengue cases in Jalan Kubah rose from 92 cases (November, last year) to 100 cases in January this year.
Some 60 residents were involved in the activity. Residents were divided into two groups before the clean up works began.
The first batch began clearing fallen leaves on the roadside, trimming and cutting down overgrown shrubs, disposing old pieces of furniture and cleaning clogged drains along and behind their houses.
Resident Vincent Jayashankar said since he moved there in 2005 there had been no dengue outbreak reported until November last year when about 92 dengue cases were reported.
He said there had been no deaths reported so far. However, he hoped the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) would take swift action.
"This is the first time it has happened in our neighbourhood, or in other precincts like Adang and Serambi in Bukit Jelutong.
"Each year this neighbourhood organises gotong-royong but we just can not understand why we are being affected by the dengue outbreak," he said.
However, he claimed that there was ongoing construction work being done by a private developer nearby.
"I do not want to point at anyone but since the construction began, we have not seen any fogging being carried out," he said.
Another resident, Adi Ibrahim, 37, said he and his wife have been cleaning their house grounds regularly. However, his wife, Syahadah Abu Bakar, 35, fell ill with dengue fever recently.
He said his wife was discharged a week ago and is now recovering at home.
"My wife is feeling better now and will soon start work. Since the outbreak hit our neighbourhood, we felt it is important to have this gotong-royong.
"It is hard to stop the mosquitoes from entering our homes. The council too have been fogging the area but sometimes fogging only works temporarily," he said.
He said the authority needed to step up efforts to reduce dengue cases in the area.