Health officials in several Tampa Bay counties have declared a local state of emergency over the past few days due to a major dengue fever outbreak. The mosquito-borne viral illness, notorious for intense joint pain, is often called “breakbone fever.” Dengue is more common in tropical countries but has been increasing in the U.S. in recent years. The Florida Department of Health has reported 190 cases so far this year—Florida’s second-highest total on record, behind the 199 cases in 2023. By comparison, the state recorded 62 cases last year. The last major U.S. outbreak outside the Texas-Mexico border occurred in 2009. Residents of Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties have been urged to dump standing water from garbage cans, gutters and buckets, maintain chlorinated pools, and report mosquito problems. Most U.S. cases are linked to travel to the Caribbean, Central and South America, Southeast Asia, and Pacific islands. “This is wildly unusual for us,” a Hillsborough County spokesperson told ABC News. Experts point to warm temperatures, heavy rain, and Florida’s proximity to Puerto Rico as conditions that have helped mosquitoes multiply. One death—an elderly woman—has been confirmed.
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