No fewer than 93 people have died of cholera in Kaduna state between March and July 2021, the director, Disease Control, State Primary Health Care Board, Dr. Hamza Ibrahim Kaura, has disclosed.
Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting at the Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) on the high flood alert level in the state, which was raised from 1 to 5, Kaura told Blueprint that the state “has so far recorded 1,099 cases from 19 local government areas within the stated period, while two people are hospitalised.”
He attributed the outbreak of the disease and diarrhoea in the state to “poor hygiene, poor environmental condition, and the lack of potable water, poor disposal of solid and other wastes.”
According to him, the state government has set up committees across the 23 local government areas.
He said, “There is a cholera outbreak in most Northern states including Kaduna state. The Kaduna state government has mandated all relevant state agencies to collaborate in addressing the disease. We have 1,100 cases of cholera in 19 local government areas of the state, 93 people have lost their lives to cholera since March 2021. We didn’t get a report from four local governments.
“Currently, we have only two cases of cholera and diarrhoea under admission in the state. The outbreak is due to poor hygiene, poor environmental conditions and the lack of potable water. The government has set up committees in all the 23 local government areas to address the outbreak. We are intensifying sensitisation of people of the state, washing of hands, clearing of waste around the house as an immediate solution.”
The executive secretary, SEMA, Alhaji Abubakar Hassan, in his remarks, said the state had raised flood alert to level 5, adding that “it is imperative to strategise and respond appropriately to the predicted flood instead of paying relief to flood victims.”
“There is flood prediction which has raised the flood alert from 1 to 5, the rains will continue till November. There is a need to clean Kaduna state of debris and waste to ensure that drains are freed of waste. There is a need for the communities to be aware of the dangers in the issue of cholera, flood to mitigate impact of rain on the people’s health in a bid to step down the level of engagement.”
