Governor declares emergency in fight against dengue outbreak

Gov. David Ige announced Friday afternoon he has signed a statewide emergency proclamation in response to Hawaii Island’s ongoing dengue fever outbreak.

The governor said that the measure was also a preventive measure in light of the threat of the Zika virus, which has health officials worldwide keeping a close eye on mosquito-borne illnesses.

Meanwhile Friday, the state Department of Health announced one new confirmed case of dengue fever. The total case count now stands at 255 with 231 of those being Hawaii Island residents and 24 visitors. Just one of the cases remains potentially infectious to mosquitoes.

For more information, see tomorrow’s edition of West Hawaii Today.