The governor of Hawaii has signed an emergency proclamation regarding Zika and other mosquito-borne illnesses.
Gov. David Ige signed the declaration Friday as “a preventative measure” to guard against Zika, dengue fever and other diseases, his office said in a statement.
The action follows the recent decision by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to take emergency steps to prepare for and mitigate the Zika risk, the statement said.
“There have been no locally acquired Zika cases in the U.S. or Hawaii, and we’d like to keep it that way,” the new release quoted the governor as saying. “This is about getting in front of the situation across the state.”
However, there have been some cases of dengue fever on the island of Hawaii. The statement from the governor’s offce said such cases “continue to be fewer” and further between, but the battle to break the cycle of transmission continues.
The Zika virus is prompting worldwide concern because of an alarming connection to a neurological birth disorder and its rapid spread across the globe.
The World Health Organization described it as an “extraordinary event” while declaring a public health emergency this month.