KAILUA-KONA — A new case of dengue fever has been confirmed on Hawaii Island, state health officials announced Thursday afternoon.
The state Department of Health said the new case, which brings the total case count to 261, was locally acquired. Officials said the person did not have a history of recent travel outside of Hawaii.
Prior to the new case announced Thursday, there hadn’t been a case confirmed on the island since Feb. 24.
“We have been cautiously optimistic about the slowdown of cases over the last few weeks,” said Darryl Oliveira, administrator of the Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency and incident commander of the Hawaii Island dengue response. “Our plan has always been to continue to be vigilant and maintain our efforts to work with the community to protect our residents and visitors through education, outreach, and mosquito abatement.”