The UN fears an “explosion” of cholera cases in Haiti
Haiti announced on Sunday the first cases of cholera for three years, with at least seven deaths already. The increase in cases could be exponential.
Since the announcement of a fuel price hike, Haiti has been the scene of new violence, looting and demonstrations. (illustrative image)
AFP
The UN warned Thursday against a risk of an “explosion” of cholera cases in Haiti, calling for the creation of a “humanitarian corridor” to overcome the blockage of the country’s main oil terminal and ensure the delivery of drinking water to the population. The country announced on Sunday the first cases of cholera for three years, with at least seven deaths already.
Eleven cases have been confirmed, 111 are suspected, but “the numbers could be much higher,” the UN humanitarian coordinator in the country, Ulrika Richardson, said Thursday during a press conference by video from Haiti, noting that the cases seemed confined for the moment to the capital Port-au-Prince.
But “with the current situation in the country, if all the right conditions are not met, we could face an exponential, even explosive increase in cholera cases. We could even unfortunately speak of a perfect combination for a disaster, ”she added.
“Responding to urgent needs”
A cholera epidemic caused the death of more than 10,000 people in Haiti between 2010 and 2019. Since the announcement on September 11 by Prime Minister Ariel Henry of a rise in fuel prices, the country already in crisis was the scene of new violence, looting and demonstrations. And since mid-September, the Varreux oil terminal, the largest in the country, has been blocked by armed gangs.
“This means that the whole country is starting to run out of fuel”, forcing some health services to close and preventing garbage collection, insisted the UN official. Without forgetting “the interruption of the distribution of water”, its cleanliness being one of the major conditions for containing an epidemic of cholera whose bacterium is transmitted by water, and “saving lives”, a-t- she adds.
The UN and other humanitarian organizations present on the ground called on Thursday for the “immediate creation of a humanitarian corridor to allow fuel to get out and meet the urgent needs of the population”.
A priority appeal to the government, which “must do everything in its power to unblock the terminal”, but also “a plea to tell those who are blocking it that it is literally killing people” and to the international community which “must support Haiti to strengthen its security forces”, explained Ulrika Richardson.
AFP
You found an error?Please let us know.