Cholera death toll mounts in Darfur

Eight people died of cholera at Dauo and Fina areas of Darfur’s East Jebel Marra on Monday and Tuesday, while a medical isolation centre in the area recorded more than 150 cases from Saturday to Tuesday, volunteers working in East Jebel Marra reported to Radio Dabanga. This was confirmed by doctors related to the Ministry of Health in South Darfur.

The source said that the eight cholera deaths occurred because of remoteness of the Lebei centre for treatment of cholera cases about 35 km away along rugged mountain roads which delays the arrival of patients to the only centre of cholera.

The sources said that the most of the 150 cases recorded at Lebei centre have been treated, while 27 cases are still hospitalised at the centre.

The sources said that the workers have complained about the shortage of medicines.

Volunteers have appealed to the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNICEF to intervene urgently to rescue people of East Jebel Marra.

West Darfur

The cholera medical isolation centre at camp Murnei for the displaced in West Darfur recorded 13 new cases of cholera on Monday and Tuesday.

Yesterday, a Sheikh from camp Murnei told Radio Dabanga: “On Monday the camp’s medical isolation centre received 10 new cases of cholera”.

He said that the same centre recorded three new cases from the camp on Tuesday.

He pointed out that the number of hospitalised cases at the medical isolation centre was nine new cases of cholera until Tuesday.

Central Darfur

In Zalingei of Central Darfur, 2 people died of cholera and 7 others were taken to Zalingei hospital on Monday and Tuesday.

Yesterday sources in Zalingei told Radio Dabanga that the number of cases of cholera at the isolation centre of Zalingei Hospital reached 69 cases on Tuesday.

South Darfur

13 people died of cholera and 91 were infected in the southern district of El Wehda in Nyala.

Two people died of cholera and 24 others were infected at Kalma camp for the displaced on Monday and Tuesday.

Yagoub Abdallah Furi, the General Coordinator of displaced persons and refugees’ camps told Radio Dabanga that “The IRC medical isolation centre recorded two deaths and eight new cases of cholera on Monday and Tuesday.

He explained that the medical isolation centre recorded 16 new cases of cholera on Monday and Tuesday.

He added that the total number of hospitalised cases at the two centres was 25 until Tuesday.

Kass in South Darfur has recorded 12 cases of cholera on Sunday and Monday, while no death cases have been reported these days.

Medical sources in Kass reported to Radio Dabanga that 2 of the 12 cases were from Tarignj village, while 3 cases were reported from Sikki village.

The sources said that 4 cases of cholera were recorded from inside Kass on Monday.

Also Kass locality witnessed the death of four people of cholera on Saturday.

The sources confirmed recording 10 new cases of cholera in Kass on the same Saturday, four of them inside the town and the others from the villages nearby.

'Acute watery diarrhoea'

The National Epidemiological Corporation reported in July that nearly 24,000 Sudanese have been infected and 940 cholera patients have died since the outbreak of the infectious disease in Blue Nile state in August last year.

The Sudanese authorities however, refuse to call the disease by its name, and refer to it as “Watery Diarrhoea”. The National Intelligence and Security Service has repeatedly warned medics and the press in the country not to make mention of cholera. Cholera “seems to be a stigma for the government,” a Sudanese specialist told Radio Dabanga in January.

Follow #CholeraInSudan, #الكوليرا_السودان for ongoing coverage by Radio Dabanga