The UN expressed concern on Tuesday about a “marked increase” in cholera cases in Haiti with a virtual doubling of the number of suspected cases in a few days.
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“Until a few days ago, the increase in cholera cases was gradual, but we are now seeing a clear and worrying increase, so the situation is becoming more complicated,” wrote in a blog published on Tuesday the humanitarian coordinator of the UN in the country, Ulrika Richardson.
The disease, although deadly, is ‘preventable and treatable’, so ‘action must be taken without delay’, she added, hailing the ‘swift and decisive’ response from authorities and NGOs despite the chaos caused by the lockdown of the main oil terminal by the gangs for a month.
“According to the Haitian Ministry of Health, the number of suspected cases almost doubled between October 20 and October 23, from around 1,000 to nearly 2,000,” said Stéphane Dujarric during a press briefing. Spokesperson for UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
“According to UNICEF, children under 14 account for almost half of these suspected cases,” he added, stressing that fuel shortages made the work of humanitarian workers “much more difficult”.
Shortages
While the lack of fuel has interrupted the distribution of drinking water, crucial in the fight against this disease, Unicef has started to distribute drinking water to around a thousand people in Cité Soleil, a commune which is “the “one of the epicentres” of this new outbreak of cholera, he said.
Ulrika Richardson, who visited several health centers in the most affected neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince, described “heartbreaking scenes”: “children so malnourished that it was difficult to insert an infusion into their arm or leg; really sick adults.
Cholera returned to Haiti in early October after three years of respite.
After the bacteria was introduced by peacekeepers in 2010, a cholera epidemic raged until 2019, killing more than 10,000 people.
To deal with the country’s paralysis and the deteriorating health and humanitarian situation, the government has called on the international community for help. At the request of Antonio Guterres, the Security Council is considering sending an international force to restore order.