Dengue fever claims 21 lives in Dhaka in one day; overall death toll rises to 618

At least 21 people died of dengue in Bangladesh on Saturday, registering a single-day high since the health authorities started record-keeping in 2000, taking the total death toll to 618.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services, of the new deaths, 17 people died due to the mosquito-borne dengue fever in Dhaka.

The total cases of hospitalizations rose to almost 127,700, including nearly 59,600 cases from Dhaka, the health authority said in its daily dengue update.

Health Authorities have urged people to rush to hospitals when infected with the virus.

Dengue is a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes but there is no specific treatment for the infection.