Health Dept. personnel of Saba and Bonaire on Statia for training

Vector controllers from the Saba and Bonaire health depart­ments are on St. Eusta­tius this week for training together with colleagues from the local health de­partment.

The training is focused on the implementation of a computer programme that would help them get better insight into what is going on with mosquitoes on the islands. The vector controllers are learning the programme specifics and mapping.

“Hopefully in about a year’s time enough data will be collected to high­light hotspots locations. For instance, we are trying to put all the known water spots on a map. We will also be monitoring the different places and collecting the number of mosquitoes,” said Dr Gerwin Schobbe of the St. Eustatius Public Health Department. Containers found on prop­erties will also be collected to help give better insight than what is available right now about mosquitoes, Schobbe said. Weather data will also be logged in the computer programme for forecasting purposes.

Speaking about aban­doned properties the public health department regularly treats, Statia vector controller Javier Gomez of the health department will continuously treat those hot spots. The problem with some properties is that the owner(s) is unknown to the health department. An­other problem the health department is facing is that certain properties that are deteriorating have various owners.

Schobbe said persons with mosquito problems should contact the health depart­ment to get their property checked.

Saba vector controller Carlos Weeks said combat­ing mosquitos and other pests are basically the same on Saba as on Statia. The vector controllers go house-to-house every day.  They inspect 25 houses per day on the island and everything is treated for mosquitos and other pests.

The Daily Herald.