Cholera outbreak kills 500 in Congo

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2017/0...eak-kills-500/


Cholera outbreak kills 500 in Congo
September 12, 2017

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday said more than 500 people have so far died in cholera epidemic sweeping the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The world body said in a statement that outbreaks of the water-borne disease occur regularly in Congo, mainly due to poor sanitation and the lack of access to clean drinking water.

It stated that this year?s epidemic, which hit at least 10 urban areas including Kinshasa, was particularly disturbing as about 1.4 million people were displaced by violence in the central Kasai region.

The WHO said at least 528 people had died and the epidemic had spread to 20 of Congo?s 26 provinces...

[Ronan Kelly]

DRC: 1990 new cholera cases recorded in one week, 50 deaths

Posted on Sat, 18/11/2017 - 19:00 | Last modified Sat, 18/11/2017 - 19:00
Cholera DRC Health topicality National

The DRC recorded, from November 6 to 12, 2017, 1990 new cases of cholera including 50 deaths, reports Didier Bompange, coordinator of the National Program for the Elimination of Cholera (PNEC), this Saturday, November 18, during a conference organized by the Ministry of Health.

He compares this epidemic with the 12,000 who died in his first week in Goma in 1994. The PNEC coordinator also reports that since the beginning of the year, cholera has infected more than 45,000 people and killed 918 patients. The Greater Kasai region is the worst hit, the source said.

" The most worrying situation is that of Kasai, because of the destructuring of the structures of care and also because cases come from villages more and more remote, very isolated and access is extremely difficult. All the partners of the Ministry of Health [M?decins sans Fronti?res, WHO, UNICEF] and our teams in the cholera elimination program are at work with the means at our disposal, "notes M Bompange.

He calls for mobilizing resources to fight this disease.

" Most importantly, we need a lot more resources and partners to respond mainly to the problem that is emerging in Kasai, because today, the epidemic, for other provinces, is dropping sharply, even though we still have a few homes in Kongo Central, South Kivu and Upper Lomami. We need to mobilize staff for much longer. This staff, you have to pay for it, you need the drugs, ... and all that comes to millions of dollars, "argues the coordinator of the National Program for the Elimination of Cholera.

This epidemic affects 22 of the 26 provinces in the DRC.

https://www.radiookapi.net/2017/11/18/actualite/sante/rdc-1990-nouveaux-cas-de-cholera-enregistres-en-une-semaine-50-deces

Kasai: 35 deaths due to cholera

Posted on Wed, 22/11/2017 - 11:28 | Modified on Wed, 22/11/2017 - 11:28
Cholera Kasai crisis Health topicality National

More than 500 suspected cases of cholera, including 35 deaths, were recorded in the Kasai region between 6 and 12 November. The National Program for the Elimination of Cholera and the Control of Other Diarrheal Diseases revealed it in a weekly report published on Monday, November 20th.

Nearly 2,000 suspected cases of cholera have been reported in 71 health zones across the country, says the report of the national program of elimination of this disease. Kasai is considered one of the most cholera-affected households. The region alone has 35 deaths, out of the 50 recorded in 16 of the DRC's 26 provinces.

Regarding rumors about suspected cases reported to Luiza, the coordinator of the national program against cholera, Didier Bompangue, says his teams are going on the spot to investigate. Within two days, he says, his structure will give details of this situation.

To prevent the spread of this disease, Didier Bompangue appealed to mobilize the means to implement the second global cholera response plan. According to him, this plan is valued at 8 million US dollars.

The cholera epidemic was declared in the DRC last July and since January, more than 45,000 suspected cases and 918 deaths have been reported in the country.

https://www.radiookapi.net/2017/11/22/actualite/sante/kasai-35-deces-dus-au-cholera

Walikale: cholera killed about 20 people in one month in Oninga

Posted on Wed, 22/11/2017 - 11:30 | Modified on Wed, 22/11/2017 - 11:30
Cholera Oninga Walikale dead Health topicality National
Walikale (marked in red on the map) in North Kivu.
Walikale (marked in red on the map) in North Kivu.
Twenty people have already died from cholera since the beginning of October in Oninga, a town of about 11,000 inhabitants, located in Usala group in the territory of Walikale (North Kivu).

According to the provincial health minister of North Kivu who gave this information to Radio Okapi, the extreme poverty in which the inhabitants of this land live and its isolation do not contribute to the response against this disease.

Oninga is completely isolated from the rest of Walikale because of the lack of road infrastructure.

According to local sources, it takes at least two weeks of walking to reach this locality from the cities accessible by roads. The last intervention of the health services to combat this disease goes back to the end of October.

It required the support of MONUSCO helicopters for the government and WHO teams to deliver medical inputs to Oninga for the cholera response.

https://www.radiookapi.net/2017/11/22/actualite/sante/walikale-le-cholera-fait-une-vingtaine-de-morts-en-un-mois-oninga