Waipio Valley reopens as new dengue case confirmed

Waipio Valley has reopened to the public, but the Big Island isn’t out of the dengue fever woods just yet.

Both the valley overlook and access road were once again open as of Saturday morning, just over two months after Hawaii County officials first began mosquito spray treatments in the area.

The overlook has been open intermittently since its first closure in mid-January.

Access to the valley has been limited to residents.

Waipio Valley was the first site on the east side of the island to be closed to the public after the dengue outbreak began last September.

There have been no confirmed cases associated with the valley since Feb. 1.

After a peak in November, islandwide confirmed cases have dropped off.

The most recent Department of Health infection risk map, published Wednesday, showed no areas of high or moderate risk.

On Friday, however, a new confirmed case was reported on the leeward side of the island, bringing the total number of Hawaii Island dengue cases to 262. Of those, 236 were reported by residents and 26 were reported by visitors.

The new case was reported by a visitor, said Darryl Oliveira, Hawaii County Civil Defense Administrator. “We’re still maintaining that it’s an active outbreak,” he said. “In all outbreaks, there’s a degree of underreporting.”

Some people may not come forward to report their cases, while others may display more mild symptoms.

Earlier this week, State Epidemiologist Sarah Park told the Tribune-Herald that an outbreak typically is not declared over until there are three incubation periods without a confirmed case.

A dengue incubation period is one week.

Oliveira encouraged residents and visitors to continue following the protocol established by the DOH Fight the Bite campaign, such as eliminating potential mosquito breeding areas and applying insect repellant while outdoors.

“It’s the public doing their part,” he said.

Email Ivy Ashe at iashe@hawaiitribune-herald.com.