Laurence Dollimore
LOCALS in southern Spain are demanding a vaccine to fight the deadly West Nile virus following an uptick in cases and two recent deaths.
Residents in La Puebla del Rio, Sevilla, took to the streets on Monday to demand a plan of action from the Junta de Andalucia, including new protocols in hospitals.
It comes after an 86-year-old local died from the disease, which is transmitted by tiger mosquitos, on July 20 this year.
READ MORE: What is the West Nile virus? All you need to know
Juan Jose Sanchez Silva, who is the spokesman for the La Puebla del Rio residents’ association, warned that ‘this is going to get worse and will become an epidemic.’
He said the recent death was the ‘first of many’.
Speaking at the rally today, he said: “This is the first demonstration and I am going to go to all the affected towns and wherever I have to go to try to get everyone to listen to us, and we will take it to the Junta de Andalucia and wherever it needs to be taken to.”
While the West Nile virus has been present in mosquitos for years in Andalucia, the number of cases is climbing and Sanchez Silva says the situation this year is ‘more serious’.
“The weather is changing and bird migrations are more frequent, and they are the ones that bring the virus,” he added, “I think that is the cause of this whole problem.”
He said that current fumigation protocols are ‘not the solution.’
There are no current vaccines against the West Nile virus, with people simply advised to lower their risk to mosquito bites.
Sanchez Silva said: “There is a vaccine that is in a third phase, but for economic reasons it was left behind…
“We ask that the vaccine be made because this is an epidemic. This is going to become an epidemic. We must act now.”
He thanked the local town halls and the City Council of La Puebla for their work in battling the disease, be it through fumigation or public awareness campaigns.
He added: “This is not about any political colour, this is about the fact that there is a mosquito that is infected by a virus and if it bites you it can kill you.
“This has no class, no colour, this is a mosquito that bites you and kills you.”
Andalucia’s health ministry has confirmed two deaths from the disease so far this summer. They include an 86-year-old woman from La Puebla del Rio, who was admitted to Virgen del Rocio hospital, and a 71-year-old woman, a resident of Dos Hermanas.
Over the past week there have been at least four new confirmed cases of the infection, made up of three residents of La Puebla del Rio and another from Los Palacios y Villafranca.
