The Brisbane City Council has explained the increase of Ross River Fever cases has been due to heavy than expected rainfall in February. QLD Health figures show the northern suburbs of Brisbane have had a spike in cases of Ross River Fever with numbers greater this year than the previous 4 years combined. The Council Opposition Leader Cr Cassidy countered the earlier heavy rainfalls account stating that council record’s showed that the budget for mosquito spraying had not been fully spent by $1.1million (20% of budget). QLD Health records indicate in the year to date there have been 295 reported cases of Ross River Fever in the state. At the same time last year, QLD had only 104 cases recorded, with 280 cases recorded for the whole of 2019.
Dr Jonathan Darbro who is an advanced medical entomologist at the Metro North Hospital, advised that Ross River Fever is a “common mosquito-borne disease which causes fever, joint pain and fatigue.” He attributed the spike in Metro north numbers in part due to earlier heavy rainfall which increased the mosquito numbers in the area. Dr Darbro also advised that Ross River Fever cases depending on local rainfall, mosquito numbers and wildlife populations will spike every two to five years. Read More
*This information came from an article in Brisbane Times 13/5/2020.