Taito Louis and Taunese Lene pictured with their daughter Niulina and son Misiafa (12). Misiafa died of dengue fever at Starship Children's Hospital in April.
Taito Louis and Taunese Lene pictured with their daughter Niulina and son Misiafa (12). Misiafa died of dengue fever at Starship Children's Hospital in April.
A 9-year-old boy has died of dengue fever in Samoa, the second this week following the death of a 5-year-old girl there earlier this week.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) has issued a new travel advisory as several Pacific Island countries grapple with the seriousoutbreak.
Also known as break-bone fever, dengue is a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people. Symptoms include sudden high fever, intensely sore joints and muscles, pain behind the eyes and a rash.
“Before travelling in the Pacific, familiarise yourself with our advice for staying healthy on your trip,” a statement on the MFAT SafeTravel website says.
Important prevention measures include using insect repellent, wearing protective clothing and using mosquito nets or mosquito coils during sleep.
All schools in Samoa are closed as fumigation efforts are underway to help stop the spread of mosquitoes. Photo / Samoa Government
The first dengue-related death reported in Samoa this year was that of 12-year-old Misiafa Nathaniel Lene, who contracted the disease in early April.
His family, with the help of the Samoan Government, had him medically evacuated to New Zealand for treatment but he died in his parents’ arms at Starship children’s hospital, in Auckland, on April 13.
Nauru is the latest Pacific nation to report dengue fever-related deaths: a 15-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl.
Tonga has recorded three, including a 7-month-old baby and a 19-year-old. Fiji has officially recorded four dengue deaths.
In Samoa, more than 2000 cases have been reported since an official dengue outbreak was declared in mid-April. The paediatric unit at the country’s main hospital – Moto’otua Hospital, near Apia – is at full capacity.
Samoa has shut down all schools as fumigation programmes start in the country's fight against dengue fever. Photo / Govt of Samoa
Dr Susan Jack, national clinical director for the National Public Health Service, said public health teams in Auckland have also experienced a recent surge in dengue fever cases among people returning home after picking up the illness overseas.
New Zealand does not have mosquitoes able to transmit dengue. And while you cannot catch the illness from another person, you can get it from infected mosquitoes in an area that has dengue - and there is no available vaccine in New Zealand, health authorities say.
103 cases of dengue in Auckland alone
“There were 34 confirmed cases of dengue reported in Auckland in July among people coming back into New Zealand – with approximately half acquired in Samoa – compared with just five cases at the same time in 2024,” she said.
A total of 103 cases of dengue fever have been recorded in Auckland, as of yesterday, since the start of the year. That figure is double the number of cases recorded for all of last year, when 54 cases were recorded.
About a third of the cases so far have also ended up being hospitalised, health authorities say.
In the year to date, 208 cases of dengue have been reported nationally.
“This is why it’s important that people living in New Zealand who are travelling to these areas where dengue is widespread take precautions to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes and follow local public health advice,” Dr Jack said.
Samoa's health officials are ramping up fumigation efforts in its fight against dengue fever.
Villages have also been encouraged to carry out working bees or clean-up efforts to help keep mosquitoes away.
The outbreak in Samoa comes as the country is gearing up for national elections later this month.
As a result, an influx of Samoans from overseas, particularly from New Zealand and Australia, are expected to travel there to vote.
Vaimoana Mase is the Pasifika editor for the Herald’s Talanoa section, sharing stories from the Pacific community. She won junior reporter of the year at the then Qantas Media Awards in 2010 and won the best opinion writing award at the 2023 Voyager Media Awards.
