Ten people have died in a recent outbreak of cholera in Mozambique’s northern province of Niassa, where a total of 650 cases have been recorded since December last year, said the local health authorities Tuesday.
According to Jose Manuel, director of the Provincial Health Service who spoke at a press conference in Lichinga, the capital of Niassa, 13 patients are still being hospitalized in the province’s health units for cholera and diarrheal treatment.
“Six deaths occurred in the Lago district, and the other four in the city of Lichinga,” said Manuel.
The outbreak has reportedly been linked to Malawi, a country that borders the Lago district and has registered more than 18,000 cases of the disease in recent months.
The official said that health units in Niassa have the availability of medical-surgical material to deal with the disease in the next 30 days.
“Fortunately, there has been a good response from the medical center, and the number of patients hospitalized at the moment corresponds to the available amount of medication,” he said.
Also on Tuesday, the health authorities of the central province Sofala announced the existence of 400 cumulative cases of cholera, with three patients being hospitalized.
According to the report by Radio Mocambique, the head of the public health department in Sofala Edgar Meque said that the situation is worrisome, but the authorities are strengthening measures to prevent and combat cholera.
“We are distributing chlorine in communities for water purification, we are also raising awareness of the population to improve sanitation in the environment, constructing latrines for those who don’t have, among other measures,” said the official, quoted by the report. Enditem
