Cholera kills 21 in S. Kudarat

KORONADAL City – A suspected cholera outbreak has killed at least 21 people and hospitalized 127 others in four villages in the remote town of Palimbang in Sultan Kudarat province from July 27 to Aug. 6, an official of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) said yesterday.

Sultan Kudarat-PNRC chief Marilou Geturbos-Torres confirmed the incident after visiting Barangay Milbuk and conducting water testing and assessment there Tuesday morning.

Department of Health (DOH) chief epidemiologist Dr. Eric Tayag noted that 114 of the cases, including 17 deaths, came from barangay Milbuk, while Napnapon accounts for 30 cases, including three deaths. Barangay Barongis had two cases while Wal had one.

Sitiio Wal also recorded 65 other victims who were confined at the Milbuk health center.

Cholera is a severe gastrointestinal disease often caused by consuming water or food contaminated by fecal matter.

Torres said the victims died due to lack of immediate treatment and dehydration while the others survived after they were immediately brought to the barangay health center.

All the fatalities belong to the Manobo tribe.

Tayag clarified that the victims have manifested symptoms of cholera but the DOH is still waiting for results of laboratory examinations for confirmation.

The symptoms of cholera are watery diarrhea, vomiting and leg cramps.

Torres said the cause of the deaths was not ordinary “loose bowel movement” (LBM) but possibly diarrhea or cholera. However, she refused to confirm it, citing the results of the water samples taken from the area.

Torres blamed poor water supply and inadequate sanitation as the cause of the disease.

The STAR learned that Sultan Kudarat Gov. Datu Suharto Mangudadatu has already sent a health team in Palimbang to give medical assistance to the affected people.

Palimbang Mayor Labualas “Samrod” Mamansual said he already gave initial assistance to the families of the affected residents.

“Experts have been dispatched to conduct management and investigation. The area is very remote,” Tayag said, adding that disease experts have already been dispatched to the villages to control the outbreak.

He advised affected residents to boil their drinking water and observe personal hygiene as their water sources were found contaminated with E.coli.

E.coli are a large and diverse group of bacteria that can cause diarrhea, urinary tract infection, pneumonia, respiratory illness and other diseases.

Tayag said the residents get their water from “open wells and river.”

He added that the water samples collected from these sources were examined and tested positive for E.coli, indicating that the water is not safe for drinking. – With Sheila Crisostomo, AP