While Dubai residents deal with changes due to coronavirus and stay home more often, there is an issue that is especially bugging them – a surge in flies and mosquitoes.
People have reported an increase in mosquitoes and flies and are saying that they are being “eaten alive”.
Jessica Voorn has lived in the UAE for nine years and stayed in the Dubai's Jumeirah Lake Towers (JLT) area for seven. But recently, she noticed that swarms of flies have been buzzing around the area and sitting on her balcony.
“It has never been an issue before but this is the worst time for it to start,” Voorn said.
The 29-year-old British expat is staying at home more often due to the coronavirus outbreak and the insects have especially been a menace at a time like this.
“People want to use their balconies. I would like to sit in my balcony to get fresh air as we are trying to stay home but the flies won’t let us,” she said.
The engineer believes the lake is where the insects are living, breeding and coming from. “I see them [flies and mosquitoes] in swarms around the lake and they come from inside of it,” she said.
She said that she has raised the issue with her building authorities but her efforts have not worked.
“I see the children being bitten and families being bothered but the building management just passes the blame. We need help,” she said.
The issue has been discussed on the community groups on social media as well.
Facebook user and member of ‘JLT Residents’ group, Wayne Cronin, wrote: “Hey neighbours, anyone having problems with mosquitoes? The ceiling of my balcony (4th floor, lakeside) is just infested.”
Another group participant Maheen Nizamani Waheed replied with: “Same we are on the 13th floor and the balcony is full of them. Can’t even open the door for hanging laundry.”
Residents of other areas facing the same issue
It’s not just JLT however, residents of other areas in Dubai have also reported the issue.
Eman Asad, 23, has lived in the UAE her entire life and said that she has only recently faced the issue.
“The mosquitoes are eating me alive, I am always covered in bites. I cannot sit in my garden for 10 minutes,” she said.
The Nad Al Sheba resident said that she first observed an increase in mosquitoes starting January 2020.
“We need help. I urged Dubai authorities to take action. If the municipality could spray insecticides around the area, it would be great,” the British expat said.
The complaint was escalated to Dubai Municipality, but no response has come till the time of publication.
In a January 2020 Gulf News report, Elmahi Gubran, specialist at Dubai Municipality’s Public Health Services Department, said that the municipality was carrying out pest control across 10 different sections of the city.
