Eleven more deaths were reported from dengue by the Directorate General of Health Services on Saturday, raising the fatalities from the mosquito-borne disease in Bangladesh to 167 this year. The July death toll alone rose to 120, smashing the previous highest for deaths from dengue in a single month.
Previously, the deadliest month had been November 2022, when 113 people died from the disease, according to DGHS records in the public domain.
Also on Saturday, DGHS reported 2,242 hospitalisations - easily the highest this year in a single day.
Of the new patients, 1,239 were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka and the rest outside it.
A total of 6,656 dengue patients, including 3,839 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.
So far, the DGHS has recorded 30,685 dengue cases and 23,862 recoveries this year.
The country logged 281 dengue deaths in 2022 – the highest on record after 179 deaths recorded in 2019. Also, it recorded 62,423 dengue cases and 61,971 recoveries last year.