Page 12 - DESPA
P. 12
WORLD NEWS A11
Wednesday 27 January 2016
Health minister: Brazil is ‘losing battle’ against mosquito
JENNY BARCHFIELD A massive eradication ef- A health worker stands in the Sambadrome as he sprays insecticide to combat the Aedes aegypti
Associated Press fort eliminated Aedes ae- mosquitoes that transmits the Zika virus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016.
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Bra- gypti from Brazil during the
zil’s health minister says the 1950s, but the mosquito (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
country is sending some slowly returned over the
220,000 troops to battle following decades from none involve pregnant virus and microcephaly tic approach because this
the mosquito blamed for neighboring nations, pub- women. One case had Nearly 4,000 suspected should mean we could lay
spreading a virus suspect- lic health experts have been reported earlier. cases of microcephaly down all our approaches
ed of causing birth defects said. That led to outbreaks Officials in El Salvador, Co- have been reported in now and declare the war
— but he also says the war of dengue, which was re- lombia and Brazil have sug- Brazil since October, com- lost.
is already being lost. corded in record numbers gested women stop get- pared with fewer than 150 “I don’t think this is the
Marcelo Castro said that last year. ting pregnant until the crisis cases in the country in all of case,” he added at WHO
nearly 220,000 members The arrival of Zika in Bra- has passed. 2014. headquarters, in Geneva.
of Brazil’s Armed Forces zil last year initially caused Repellent has disappeared Castro’s remarks have In Brazil, some called for
would go door-to-door to little alarm, as the virus’ from many Brazilian phar- proven controversial, both Castro to be fired.
help in mosquito eradica- symptoms are generally macies and prices for the in and outside Brazil. “He is incapable of occu-
tion efforts ahead of the much milder than those of product have tripled or World Health Organization pying his position,” wrote
country’s Carnival celebra- dengue. It didn’t become even quadrupled where spokesman Christian Lind- Helio Gurovitz, a columnist
tions. Agency spokesman a crisis until late in the year, it’s still available in recent meier said he hadn’t seen with G1, the internet por-
Nivaldo Coelho said Tues- when researchers made weeks since the govern- the remarks, “but in gen- tal of the Globo television
day details of the deploy- the link with a dramatic in- ment announced a sus- eral terms I think that this network.q
ment are still being worked crease in reported cases of pected link between Zika would be a bit of a fatalis-
out. microcephaly, a rare birth
Castro also said the gov- defect that sees babies
ernment would distribute born with unusually small
mosquito repellent to some heads and can cause last-
400,000 pregnant women ing developmental prob-
who receive cash-transfer lems.
benefits. But worry about the rapid
But the minister also said spread of Zika has expand-
the country has failed in ef- ed across the nation, and
forts against the Aedes ae- the hemisphere beyond.
gypti mosquito that trans- The U.S. Centers for Disease
mits Zika, dengue, chikun- Control and Prevention has
gunya and yellow fever. advised pregnant women
“The mosquito has been to reconsider travel to Bra-
here in Brazil for three de- zil and 21 other countries
cades, and we are badly and territories with Zika out-
losing the battle against breaks.
the mosquito,” the minis- One of them, the U.S. terri-
ters told reporters as a crisis tory of Puerto Rico, report-
group on Zika was meeting ed 18 new confirmed cases
in the capital, Brasilia. of Zika on Tuesday, though
US tourist slain on Caribbean island of Grenada
LINDA STRAKER the attack, which occurred curred in an area of beach cian. The couple, who met time.”
Associated Press around noon Sunday on and mangrove in St. David at a dance workshop in The motive for the attack
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada a remote stretch of coast Parish, McIntrye said. Costa Rica, married in No- was unknown. The hus-
(AP) — A machete-wield- along the island’s south- They had walked from the vember 2014, according to band told the police that
ing man attacked a U.S. east, said Sylvan McIntyre, more popular La Sagesse an online wedding album. he fought with the man,
tourist couple as they an assistant superintendent beach at the time to a “Jessica was a valued managed to get away
walked along an isolated with the Royal Grenada Po- more remote spot. “It is an member of our Children’s and call for help. Police
beach on Grenada, killing lice Force. A suspect was area where you can go off team,” Children’s Health- and residents of the area
the woman, police on the in custody. Colker and her for a moment of privacy care of Atlanta said in a launched a search and
Caribbean island said Tues- husband, Brian Van Melito, and seclusion,” he said. statement. “We are deeply found Colker’s body about
day. Jessica Lewis Colker, had arrived on Grenada Colker worked as a physi- saddened by this horrific an hour later in the woods.
39, of Atlanta, was found a day before the assault cian’s assistant at a chil- news. Our thoughts and An autopsy found she died
dead after her husband and were staying at a hotel dren’s hospital in metro At- prayers go out to her fam- of extensive skull fracture
ran to get help following near where the attack oc- lanta. Van Melito is a physi- ily during this very difficult and asphyxia. q
