Dengue infections have risen for a second consecutive week as wet weather continues across the island, the National Dengue Control Unit said, with 1,276 cases reported this week against 1,156 the week before.
Consultant Community Physician Dr Prasheela Samaraweera gave the figures, NewsFirst reported on Sunday morning. The week-on-week increase is 120 cases, or about 10 per cent.
The year to date
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Cases so far in 2026 | 99,634 |
| Deaths so far in 2026 | 77 |
| Worst-affected district | Gampaha — 21,136 cases |
Dr Samaraweera urged the public to keep their surroundings clean while the rainy weather continues, the standard advice aimed at removing the small pockets of standing water in which Aedes mosquitoes breed.
The district picture
The Daily Mirror’s dengue tracker, carrying national surveillance data current to 11.59 p.m. on September 24, gives Gampaha 21,136 cases — matching the National Dengue Control Unit figure quoted by NewsFirst exactly — and puts the Western Province well ahead of every other province.
| District | Cases |
|---|---|
| Gampaha | 21,136 |
| Colombo | 19,569 |
| Kandy | 7,547 |
| Kalutara | 6,339 |
| Matara | 6,273 |
| Galle | 5,435 |
| Ratnapura | 5,212 |
| Colombo MC | 3,981 |
| Kegalle | 3,020 |
Source: Daily Mirror dengue tracker, data to September 24.
Why now
The rise coincides with a sustained wet spell in the southwest. The Irrigation Department has extended minor flood warnings on the Nilwala and Gin rivers, and the Meteorology Department continues to forecast showers across the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and the Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts. Rainfall followed by warm weather is the classic dengue amplification pattern: discarded containers, roof gutters and construction sites hold water long enough for a full mosquito breeding cycle.
The caseload is running well above last year’s pace. Cases passed 85,364 at the start of August, when the weekly count was falling; the trend has since reversed.
Not reported
Neither report gives the number of deaths recorded this week, a breakdown of the new cases by district, or the age profile of those infected. Neither says whether hospital admissions are keeping pace with reported cases, and no health official is quoted on whether ward capacity is under strain. The Daily Mirror tracker’s provincial panel displays percentages calculated against the largest province rather than the national total, so those shares should not be read as shares of all cases.
