Cholera Outbreak in South Sudan Worsen Has Thousands Dispalced

creit: hunger-undernutrition.org

UNICEF says 11 people have died following suspected cholera outbreak in South Sudan. Cholera which is a gastrointestinal disease, is usually spread by contaminated water and food, and can cause severe diarrhoea that, in extreme cases, can lead to fatal dehydration and kidney failure within hours.

The organisation said on Tuesday there are 72 suspected cases so far, including 36 in the capital, Juba. Others are in Bor and Terekeka counties.

The South Sudan's health ministry has issued an alert on Sunday after suspected cases started arriving on Friday at Juba Teaching Hospital following the recent conflict that has made resident flee their homes.

One suspected case came from inside a United Nations base in Juba, raising fears that it could spread among the 4 000 people sheltering there from fighting this month between opposing army factions, said Ashley McLaughlin, spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration, which manages the camp.

Relief groups need to stem the suspected outbreak "now, before it gets worse" considering the high number of displaced people in Juba during the current rainy season, McLaughlin said.

South Sudan's civil war displaced some 28 000 people in Juba after fighting began in late 2013, and renewed fighting last week caused more upheaval, with 15 000 people taking shelter in UN, aid organisation, church and other compounds.

Last year, 47 people died in South Sudan in a cholera outbreak, and 167 died from the disease in 2014.