News
Beruwela a dengue breeding ground
View(s):![PhotofocusLogo](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/PhotofocusLogo-221x300.jpg)
Story and pix by Sarath Siriwardane.
The dengue epidemic is spreading across the country like wildfire. In most instances sheer carelessness helps its spread.
In the Beruwela area, abandoned fishing boats have become a major breeding ground for dengue mosquitoes. Health authorities say these sites now pose a major threat to the entire area.
A field inspection conducted by the National Institute of Health Services and PHIs in the area revealed, abandoned boats, empty containers and other non-degradable garbage dumped at the fishing harbour; turning them into potential breeding ground for the dengue mosquitoe.
According to health authorities, the Kalutara district has recorded 1,284 cases of dengue.
Authorities have filed legal action against 94 individuals in the Beruwala area for not keeping the environs around their homes clean which contribute to the spread of dengue.
Authorities are now taking steps to clean up the area and destroy the mosquito breeding sites.
![IMG_2570](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/IMG_2570-300x225.jpg)
Health authorities and PHIs discovered abandoned boats had turned into breeding grounds for the dengue mosquito
![IMG_2617](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/IMG_2617-300x225.jpg)
A disused boat housing thousands of mosquito larvae
![IMG_2627](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/IMG_2627-300x225.jpg)
Whose responsibility is this? Owners conveniently abandon their damaged vessels, littering the beach and creating breeding grounds for the deadly mosquito
![20170628_174401](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/20170628_174401-300x168.jpg)
Research has shown that soon there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish
![20170628_174221](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/20170628_174221-300x168.jpg)
Discarded plastic bottles prove excellent breeding grounds for the Dengue mosquito
![20170628_174055](http://www.sundaytimes.lk/170702/uploads/20170628_174055-300x168.jpg)
Should not the owners of these abandoned vessels be made to pay for their callous disregard of the environment?