Mayor of Portmore George Lee has expressed his dissatisfaction with the St Catherine Health Department's low levels of fogging within the municipality.

"We at the Portmore Municipal Council (PMC) would like to see more fogging in Portmore to bring the mosquito population to tolerable levels," he told THE PORTMORE STAR. "I'm really disappointed with the St Catherine Health Department because the mosquito fogging in Portmore is inadequate and I have told them let us set up a special unit so that we can spray and they refused as they are the only entity that can legally spray within the parish."

Mayor Lee said that he has even met with the minister of health, Dr Fenton Ferguson, to carve out a deal with regard to mosquito fogging in Portmore but talks are still ongoing.

He stressed that the drains and gullies have been cleaned, which had kept the mosquito population to minimal levels. However, since the rains, a new breed of mosquitoes have emerged with Portmore residents at their mercy.

Meanwhile, Lee said that he hopes Jamaica National's donation of $300,000 worth of equipment to the St Catherine Health Department to aid in the organisation's mosquito-fogging project would assist Portmore's mosquito woes.

With the recent rains, the health department was under severe pressure to curtail mosquitoes that are not only a nuisance, but also a serious health threat.

The last check by the council shows that Portmore had one case of dengue and three suspected dengue cases. This is expected to rise.