Cholera Outbreak Kills 12 Karen Villagers

As of October, twelve villagers had died and 61 villages suffered from cholera outbreak in Kawkareik and Kyain Seikgyi Townships near the Thai-Burma border – health workers from both countries are trying to stop the spread of the deadly disease.

Statistics from the Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW) show that most of the villages affected are in areas where government health services are inaccessible.

Naw Cha Eh Paw, a KDHW staff monitoring the situation said that the cholera outbreak was still spreading, but a lower rate.

“In some areas, the outbreak has decreased, but in some villages it is spreading. However, if we compare it to previous months, it has decreased. During [October] there was one death.”

Health workers said that the cholera outbreak started in early August and KDHW, estimates that 217 people were infected by the disease in two townships.

Naw Cha Eh Paw said that at the moment, emergency responses in the affected areas included treatment, referral, health awareness campaign and continued monitoring for the next two months.

Organisations coordinating and cooperating with KDHW include the Burma Medical Association, Back Pack Health Worker Team, Partners Relief and Development, PU-AMI (Thailand and Myanmar), Solidarity International, the Thai Public Health and UNICEF (Myanmar).