Bangladesh: One-day dengue infections break records

DHAKA, Bangladesh

Bangladesh this weekend broke a one-day dengue infection record, with 1,870 new patients hospitalized over the last 24 hours, raising the worst-ever dengue-hit tally to 24,804, government records said on Sunday.

The wife of a top police official died from the viral fever in a hospital in the capital Dhaka on Sunday, said local media reports.

Other victims include doctors, police officers, university students, and family members of top government officials, raising the death tolls to 53, according to available local media reports.

Meanwhile, the government’s Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) as of Sunday put the official death toll at 18.

Some 7,400 patients are being treated at various hospitals across the country as of Sunday, while nearly 17,400 patients have been discharged after treatment since January, according to directorate records.

All 64 districts of Bangladesh have been affected by the virus, including some 5,000 patients being treated in Dhaka and 2,429 outside the capital.

There are fears the disease may spread further out of Dhaka during the Eid Mubarak, as millions of people leave the capital for the Muslim holiday.