At least 10 seniors die each day in North Darfur capital

Mortality rates have increased dramatically in El Fasher, capital of North Darfur. At least 10 people die each day, most of whom are seniors. The registered number of coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in North Darfur is 12.

There is no medical evidence at this moment that there is any connection between the higher mortality rates in El Fasher and the coronavirus pandemic. Investigations are carried out to find out the causes of death of so many senior chronic patients.

Unofficial statistics released by activists show that more than 100 people died in El Fasher from Friday to Tuesday.

The North Darfur Ministry of Health said that it has been monitoring the mortality rate in the hospitals. Samples were taken from the deceased for tests.

The ministry claimed that it is difficult to exam the cause of death of people who do not die in a hospital. Their relatives often don’t see the importance of testing and taking samples, and don’t give information about diseases that the deceased suffered from and which symptoms they displayed.

The acting governor of North Darfur, Maj Gen Malik Khojali, confirmed the sudden and remarkable mortality among seniors in El Fasher.

In a speech on the El Fasher locality radio yesterday, the governor asked the residents not to leave the town for any reason.

Khojali also appealed to the residents of other localities to stay in their localities and not to come to El Fasher, until the causes of the sudden mortality are known.

Young activists in El Fasher, who united in the WhatsApp group ‘From the heart of El Fasher’, are organising a campaign to raise money to face the coronavirus pandemic and other diseases in the town. They do so in solidarity with the ‘Save El Fasher from the coronavirus’ committee. The campaign already managed to collect more than SDG 500,000 ($9,091*).

The Save El Fasher campaign appealed to political parties, civil society organisations, El Fasher University, Sudan’s Sovereign Council, the Council of Ministers, the federal Ministry of Health, and international organisations to accelerate interventions to address the health situation, and contain the spread of the disease in the state.

* USD 1 = SDG 55.1375 at the time of publishing this article. As effective foreign exchange rates can vary in Sudan, Radio Dabanga bases all SDG currency conversions on the daily middle US Dollar rate quoted by the Central Bank of Sudan (CBoS).

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