New Cholera outbreak kills 36 in Zimbabwe
18/11/2008 17:55
A new cholera outbreak has hit Beitbridge, a city in southern Zimbabwe
bordering South Africa, killing 36 people and resulting in the hospitalization
of 431, the daily newspaper The Herald said today.
The cholera outbreak came
after the disease has claimed 37 lives in the country's capital city of Harare
over the last two weeks.
The outbreak in Harare has now abated with slightly
improved water supplies and a major clean-up, The Herald said.
Beitbridge
medical officer Taikaitei Kanongara confirmed 36 deaths between Friday and
Saturday, saying that Beitbridge General Hospital has been designated as a
cholera treatment center and 431 people have already been admitted at the
hospital.
"Most of the admissions were on Sunday afternoon after people had
learnt of the outbreak. We expect that number to increase," Dr Kanongara
said.
Health officials were yet to establish the source of the disease, first
reported on Friday night, but measures to contain its spread have already been
put in place.
Dr Kanongara said schools in the town have been closed
temporarily while sale of fruit and vegetables in the open has been
banned.
According to preliminary findings, the outbreak could have been
caused by fruit such as mangoes and loquats (mazhanje) brought into the border
town for sale, said Dr Kanongara.
He also said poor sanitary facilities,
intermittent water supplies, flies and poor refuse management could have
contributed immensely to the outbreak.
His staff were working on contingency
measures to combat the disease and have since notified the Civil Protection
Unit.
The district had so far mobilized equipment and material with the
support of nongovernmental organizations. More resources and manpower have been
mobilized from neighboring districts while disinfecting teams are fumigating
infected homes in the town.
Dr Kanongara urged people in the border town to
seek medical attention as soon as they suspected that they had the contracted
the disease.
Officer Commanding Beitbridge Chief Superintendent Nicholas
Mawere said police would continue to arrest illegal vendors and mount roadblocks
on all roads leading into the town.
Meanwhile, in Harare Zimbabwe National
Water Authority appears to be trying to spread treated water more equitably
between its suburbs, although some that were used to receiving regular supplies
have gone without for days.
As efforts to contain the outbreak intensify,
Harare City Council on Sunday started removing rubbish at some shopping centers
in the city.
A health official at a clinic designated cholera treatment
center said the number of people being admitted with cholera had eased over the
weekend, which he attributed to better information.
Harare City Council would
open an office to receive donations to assist cholera victims in the
city.
Xinhua
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