Central areas quarantined after 6 more die of cholera

By Tererai Karimakwenda
02 March 2006

It’s been reported that there is a cholera outbreak in two central districts of the country that has killed six persons and infected 137 others. The report quotes Health officials in Zimbabwe who said on Tuesday the epidemic had broken out in Gokwe and KweKwe. According to Angola Press, the officials said quarantines had been established in all affected areas in an effort to bring the cholera outbreak under control quickly.

It was also reported that international aid agencies were recruited to help fight the outbreak. An aid official is quoted saying: "Red Cross and the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare are working hand-in-hand to keep the situation under control.” Heavy rains which washed dirt into sources of drinking water are being blamed for the recent outbreak.

Government officials have been criticised for not taking the outbreaks seriously. Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights last month released a statement urging officials to come up with a comprehensive plan to stop the spread of waterborne diseases. But they say there has been no response. As we have been reporting for months now, piles of garbage line the streets of most urban areas and combined with the heavy rains experienced this season they make for an unhealthy environment, conducive to the spread of cholera and dysentery. The displacement of nearly a million people by the government’s demolition exercise Operation Murambatsvina added to this deadly recipe. Many families are still living without clean running water.