According to health officials on Sunday, Sudan has been hit by a cholera outbreak that has affected hundreds of people and killed close to two dozen people in recent weeks.
At least 34 individuals have died from the disease, according to a statement released by Health Minister Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim during a press conference on Saturday in Port Sudan. The county has registered more than 300 confirmed cases of cholera.
Ibrahim did not provide a timeline for the deaths or the total number of deaths since the year’s beginning.
However, as of July 28, the World Health Organization reported that 78 cholera-related deaths had been reported in Sudan this year. Moreover, the illness reportedly made more than 2,400 additional people ill between January 1 and July 28.
According to the WHO, cholera is a highly contagious, quickly progressing infection that produces diarrhea. If left untreated, it can result in severe dehydration and even death in a matter of hours. The consumption of tainted food or water is how it spreads.
The outbreak of cholera is the most recent disaster to strike Sudan; in April of last year, long-simmering tensions between the military and a potent paramilitary group broke out in open combat throughout the nation.
The fighting has destroyed civilian infrastructure and severely damaged the already fragile health care system, turning the capital, Khartoum, and other cities into battlegrounds. Many hospitals and medical institutes have closed their doors because they lack the necessities.
Thousands have died and more have gone hungry as a result of it; famine has already been confirmed at a large camp for displaced people in the devastated northern area of Darfur.
The largest displacement issue in the world is a result of the violence in Sudan. The International Organization for Migration reports that since the violence started, more than 10.7 million people have been forced to leave their homes. Of them, more than 2 million emigrated to neighboring countries.
