SINGAPORE — Yesterday morning, residents at Block 102 Aljunied Crescent were aware of the one Zika case at their block but not overly worried. Over at Sims Drive, however, a sense of unease had set in by evening. By then, the authorities had announced that 40 of the 41 Zika cases were people living or working in the latter estate.

“I understand that (the authorities) might not have wanted to cause alarm, (but) they could have done more in alerting residents or serving notices to inform them about Zika earlier,” said a security officer who wanted to be known only as Mr Tan, 62.

Many residents in Block 62, where a father and son were among the cases, had already moved out because it was due to be redeveloped, and Mr Tan was concerned that the vacant units could have given rise to more mosquito breeding.

Adding that there could have been more inspections of the drains and foliage in the nearby area, he said: “The Government should get involved. Since they found more cases, they should be more vigilant ... if not it’s too late.”

Agreeing, station supervisor Anwar Ajiman, 37, who has five children, said: “We’re a bit shocked that this happened ... It has spread so fast. There needs to be more awareness and cleanliness for this estate.” Three members in his family had also developed red spots in recent weeks, he added.

MacPherson Member of Parliament Tin Pei Ling, who went with grassroots leaders to hawker centres near Geylang East Central around noon yesterday, said they were “deeply concerned” about the Zika situation and were leaving nothing chance.

They have been going house to house to look out for the well-being of pregnant women in particular, to collect their particulars and follow up by sharing information on how to guard against the virus and to seek medical attention if necessary.

About seven pregnant women from Block 99 to 111 at Aljunied Crescent are on the list so far.

Ms Tin said the onus is on residents to cooperate, in addition to government efforts: “Mosquitoes breed very easily ... We can’t just wait for the agencies to do something about this. On the ground, we need everyone to step up and do our best to prevent and drive down the risk, to protect our loved ones.”

She added: “It’s important not to be overly alarmed, but to have sufficient knowledge of what (people) can do.”

Kolam Ayer Citizens’ Consultative Committee chairman Chiang Heng Liang also told reporters: ”It has to be a coordinated effort to ensure our environment is kept safer.”

Among the residents at Block 102 was cleaner Vivian Chua, 53, who said she was a little “scared” about the Zika threat, especially for her elderly mother. Her husband and son suffered rashes last week, and she said she will be looking to buy mosquito patches and some netting for the windows.

Construction at the nearby Sims Drive area could have given rise to potential breeding spots, she fretted, before it was announced that 37 of the Zika cases were workers from the site at 60 Sims Drive.

Two foreign workers TODAY spoke to yesterday said that they were unaware of the cases. A 34-year old supervisor, who declined to be named, said he was “confident” that measures like daily temperature checks, regular fogging and getting workers to apply mosquito repellent would help curb the threat. TOH EE MING