20 February 2026 (CKT)
Operation Namu26 Weekly Update 2Today is day 15 since the activation of Operation Namu26. As of the last update, the wet weather over the last 7 days has hampered our response across the five islands. However, the planned slashing of overgrown lands continued around the Puna on Rarotonga, Aitutaki and Mauke. Scheduled block spraying was suspended for most days due to heavy rain, but peri-focal spraying and mosquito surveillance continued.
Island Clean-Up – Friday 13 February 2026
A total of 311 people on Rarotonga joined the Puna island clean-up, 45 on Aitutaki, 91 on Atiu and 42 on Mauke, consisting of government employees, private sector employees and members of the community. All schools across the four islands, as approved by the Secretary of Education, were also involved in cleaning their school
grounds.
As earlier reported, Mangaia was already a week ahead of its island clean-up at the
time of activating Operation Namu26.
Mosquito Surveillance
On Tuesday 17 February 2026, outdoor traps on Rarotonga indicated a high density of positive Aedes mosquitoes at Rarotonga International Airport, Tereora College and the Punanga Nui Market. Indoor traps at the Nikao Community Clinic, Tereora College, Avarua School and the hospital were also found with positive Aedes mosquitoes. No positive Aedes mosquito surveillance was reported from the Pa Enua.
Dengue Prevention Pack
On Thursday 19 February 2026, the Cook Islands Red Cross Society delivered 131 packs since the activation of Operation Namu26 — a total of 107 for Rarotonga, 12 for Aitutaki, 3 for Atiu, 6 for Mangaia and 3 for Mauke. The pack contains mosquito coils, mosquito nets, repellents, and laundry and hygiene items.
30-Day Dengue Trend Monitoring
Over the last 15 days, the cumulative number of positive cases continued to fluctuate, with an overall declining trend. Spikes were recorded on the last two Mondays (Mon 9 Feb = 26; Mon 16 Feb = 16), and low numbers were recorded over the last two weekends (Sun 8 Feb = 3; Sat 14 Feb = 0).
Mid-week numbers fluctuated, but the majority of positive cases (121) were recorded on Rarotonga in 14 of the last 15 days. The highest number recorded for Rarotonga was 19 positive cases on 9 February 2026, and zero (0) cases were recorded on Sunday 14 February 2026.
Pa Enua Cases
Since the activation of Operation Namu26, Aitutaki recorded 18 positive cases across 7 of the 15 days. Over the same period, Atiu recorded 3 positive cases across 2 days, Mauke recorded 4 positive cases across 3 days, and Mangaia recorded 9 positive cases across 6 days.
[ENDS]