LUSAKA (Reuters) – The cholera epidemic that has raged in Zambia since last October has killed at least 432 people, according to government statistics, which has been forced to requisition retired doctors and volunteers to deal with the disease .
Cholera is an acute diarrheal infection caused by ingestion of contaminated food or water. If left untreated, it can be fatal within hours.
Sandra Nyendwa, a resident of Lusaka, the Zambian capital, describes herself as a survivor.
She and her family used to drink unfiltered water. Last week, Sandra Nyendwa fell seriously ill, as did her seven-year-old son, who suffered from stomach aches and vomiting. Treatment at a clinic in the capital got them back on their feet.
“We weren’t used to filtering the water, we used it straight from the tap. (…) I didn’t think I would come home alive, it was terrible,” Sandra Nyendwa told Reuters.
Nine of Zambia’s ten provinces are hit by the epidemic, and Lusaka, a city of some three million inhabitants, has the highest number of cases.
Neighboring countries – Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique – are also facing the disease. The World Health Organization (WHO) has begun sending oral doses of cholera vaccines.
(Reporting by Moses Mwape, with contributions from Chris Mfula; French version Sophie Louet, editing by Blandine Hénault)
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