Florida dengue cases climb as Tampa Bay agencies step up response

Locally acquired dengue fever is spreading across Florida against a backdrop of record US transmission, with officials expecting case counts to rise through the coming weeks. As of September 1, 33 people in the Tampa Bay region had contracted the virus within the state, part of a statewide total of 41 locally acquired cases recorded this year.

The Florida Mosquito Control Association puts the county breakdown at 30 confirmed cases in Hillsborough, seven in Miami-Dade, three in Pinellas and one in Palm Beach. The Florida Department of Health has issued mosquito-borne illness alerts for both Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

The current spread sits inside a larger cycle. The CDC reported in May that 2024 was a record year for dengue across US states and the District of Columbia, with 3,798 cases logged, a 359% increase over the annual average for 2010 through 2023. Of those, roughly 97% were travel-associated and about 3% were locally acquired. Florida led all US states that year with 1,044 dengue cases, 85 of which were locally acquired across ten counties.

The transmission path is cross-border in character. Dengue is most prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions including Southeast Asia, the Western Pacific islands, Latin America and Africa. In Florida, the pattern tends to follow a traveler carrying the virus into a local area, a resident mosquito biting that person, and the virus then spreading into the local population. Pinellas County Mosquito Control Director Alissa Berro described the dynamic directly: dengue does not stop at county lines, and as cases rise across the Tampa Bay region, so does the potential for additional local transmission.

The mosquito responsible is a container breeder, laying eggs in water-collecting objects such as buckets, planters, tires and discarded toys. Mosquito-control crews have escalated aerial and ground treatments in areas showing virus activity and are inspecting private properties for breeding sites. The FMCA is urging residents to empty or cover standing water around their homes.

Dengue can cause fever, severe body aches, nausea and rash. Most people recover within a week or two, according to Mayo Clinic. In some cases the illness progresses to severe dengue, a potentially life-threatening condition. Warning signs, which can develop quickly after a fever subsides, include severe stomach pain, repeated vomiting, unusual bleeding and difficulty breathing. Locally acquired transmission has also been recorded in California and Texas, and the virus is common in US territories including Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and American Samoa.

Fox 13 Tampa Bay reported that officials expect case counts to continue rising in the coming weeks.