Stating that monkeys have not been dying in bulk in Dakshina Kannada, Sasikanth Senthil S., Deputy Commissioner, said on Wednesday that people need not panic about the spread of Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD) in the district.

Addressing presspersons here, he said nine monkeys were found dead in the district this year. Of them, the viscera of two have been sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, to check whether they were infected with KFD. The report is awaited. The bodies of remaining seven monkeys were too decomposed and hence body samples could not be collected.

Mr. Senthil said that KFD does not spread from one person to another and there is limitations in its spread. It is transmitted by the bite of infected ticks and spread by the movement of monkeys that carry infected ticks. If there is death of monkeys in bulk in an area, there is reason to suspect the prevalence of KFD in that area.

“We are closely monitoring the situation in the district,” he said.

Ramakrishna Rao, District Health and Family Welfare Officer, said that samples of some ticks have also been sent for testing.

He appealed to people to inform the health, forest or veterinary departments if they find a dead monkey. If they do, the carcass should not be burnt immediately.

The DHO said that severe weakness and severe headache are the early symptoms of KFD. Severe body pain, excess thirst, severe fever are the other symptoms. Those who have visited forest areas should take a bath in hot water and wash their clothes and maintain cleanliness, he said.

In all, three deaths due to KFD were reported in the district from 2004-05 to 2014-15.