Cholera outbreak hits Bauchi, these other Northern states

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Saturday said it has recorded 1,786 cases of cholera in some Northern states in the country in just six days.

The NCDC Director-General, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, who disclosed this to journalists in Abuja, said the cases were reported between June 20 and June 26.

The affected states are Bauchi (1,239), Kano (362), Niger (62), Zamfara (55), Kaduna (59) and Plateau (9).

Ihekweazu said between January and June 27, a total of 14, 343 suspected cases of cholera were reported from 15 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). He added that 325 fatalities were recorded during the period.

READ ALSO: Cholera outbreak: Gombe Commissioner declares affected area free

The affected states are Benue, Delta, Zamfara, Gombe, Bayelsa, Kogi, Sokoto, Bauchi, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau, Kebbi, Cross-River, Nasarawa, Niger and the FCT.

The NCDC chief said a multi-sectorial national Emergency Operations Centre coordinates the cholera national response activities.

He said: “The EOC is co-led by the Federal Ministry of Environment and that of Water Resources given the link between cholera, water, sanitation and hygiene.

“The centre has been supporting states to ensure a coordinated, rapid and effective response to the current outbreak. This includes the deployment of National Rapid Response Teams to support the response at the state level, provision of medical and laboratory supplies, and scale-up of risk communications amongst other activities.”