Haiti's Preval warns of cholera spike after storm

Haiti's Preval warns of cholera spike after storm

November 7, 2010 — Port-au-Prince, Haiti (Reuters) Haitian President Rene Preval warns of a spike in cholera deaths after the passing of Tomas, saying flooding caused by the storm could increase the contagion threat from the deadly epidemic

Haiti's President Rene Preval said on Saturday (November 6) that although his earthquake-smashed country had escaped a fresh disaster threatened by Hurricane Tomas, the flooding caused by the storm could increase the contagion threat from a deadly cholera epidemic.

“The storm has passed, now we are bandaging the wounds that the storm has left, but the cholera epidemic is continuing, especially since the situation has gotten worse because on one side we have the rivers that will carry the bacteria everywhere, and on the other hand, we have the people who have been displaced that could also carry the bacteria,” Preval told a news conference at the Presidential Palace.

Amid widespread relief that the hurricane largely spared crowded camps in the Haitian capital housing 1.3 million quake survivors, the international humanitarian operation was turning its attention back to the two-week-old epidemic, which has killed just over 500 people and sickened more than 7,000.

“We are telling people to be careful. Now is the time to be vigilant, next week we're going to come to have results that show cholera is going down, but now it is on its way back up. The solution is very simple, wash your hands with soap, especially between your fingers,” said Preval.

Tomas skirted Haiti on Friday, flooding some coastal towns, forcing thousands from their homes and soaking camps for displaced people in the capital Port-au-Prince with rain.

Eight people died as a result of the hurricane, the government said on Saturday, and about 10,000 people left their homes voluntarily to escape floodwaters.

However Prevail said it was too early to fully assess the damage caused by Tomas.

“The evaluations we have we cannot rely on because some roads are damaged so it's lacking precision. Especially on damages that were done to the agriculture, because we have to make sure that we have enough food,” explained Preval.

Eight dead was a light storm toll for Haiti compared with the destruction inflicted by hurricanes and storms that battered the Western Hemisphere's poorest county in 2004 and 2008, killing several thousand people. More than 250,000 people died in the Jan. 12 earthquake that struck the poor Caribbean country.

United Nations officials said Haiti was lucky it was not hit harder by Tomas, an unpredictable late hurricane in the busy 2010 Atlantic hurricane season.

After raking Haiti, Tomas swept over the Turks and Caicos Islands early on Saturday as a tropical storm. There were no immediate reports of serious damage or casualties.

By late Saturday, Tomas had regained hurricane strength over the open Atlantic, but posed no threat to land.

While sparing Haiti widespread destruction or mass casualties, the hurricane still created a major disruption weeks before presidential and legislative elections set for Nov. 28. Electoral officials have not postponed the vote.

The cholera epidemic, which has affected five of Haiti's provinces, still appeared to be spreading.

Haiti's health ministry released updated figures showing 501 people had died through Nov. 4, up from 442 on Nov. 3.

The deadly diarrheal disease can be easily treated by oral rehydration if caught in time. Relief agencies were rushing clean drinking water and food to areas affected by the floods.

http://biosurveillance.typepad.com/haiti_operational_biosurv/2010/10/current-situational-map-of-the-haiti-cholera-epidemic.html