51-yr-old dies of swine flu, 14 more test positive

A 51-year-old man from Santacruz died of swine flu-related complications at a private hospital on Friday, taking the total swine flu toll in the city to eight this monsoon and 10 this year.

A 51-year-old man from Santacruz died of swine flu-related complications at a private hospital on Friday, taking the total swine flu toll in the city to eight this monsoon and 10 this year.

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The latest victim was admitted to hospital on June 25 and administered Tamiflu on the same day.

“There was no delay in treatment, but he suffered from hypertension so that made him more vulnerable,” said Dr Daksha Shah of the municipal epidemiology cell.

Fourteen others, including five children and a pregnant woman, tested positive for the H1N1 virus on Saturday.

There was also a marked rise in the number of cases of rain-related illnesses, with 102 cases of malaria, 117 cases of gastroenteritis, two cases of dengue and about 200 cases of fever reported on Saturday.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has responded with a vector-control programme in the city’s old, congested and damp mill areas, with support from the Mumbai fire department.

The programme was flagged off on Saturday at India United Mill Number 3, Prabhadevi. Stagnant water that collects on the roofs and in dilapidated ruins of old mills will be sprayed with insecticide to curb the dengue and malaria-causing mosquito population.