An “out-of-control” waterborne disease outbreak in southern Sudan has killed at least two dozen and left more than 800 others in hospital over the past three days, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said on Friday.
The outbreak in White Nile state followed a reported drone strike on the Um Dabakar power station – 275 kilometres (170 miles) south of the capital Khartoum – which disrupted access to clean water in the city of Kosti.
Sudanese health officials said Thursday that over 400 cases of cholera had been detected in the city.
The surge in cases was attributed to a “shortage of water due to power outages,” the health ministry in White Nile state said in a statement.
It comes with Sudan’s healthcare system crippled by the country’s brutal civil war which has killed tens of thousands and displaced more than 12 million people.
“The most likely source of infection is the river, where many families have been collecting water using donkey carts after a major power outage in the area,” the medical charity said in a statement.
Officials have since banned the practice and urged stronger chlorination of the water distribution system. Most local restaurants and Kosti’s market have closed as a precaution.
The outbreak has overwhelmed the cholera treatment centre at Kosti Teaching Hospital, the French-based charity said, with patients suffering from “acute diarrhoea, dehydration, vomiting, and sunken eyes”.
“The situation is really alarming and is about to get out of control,” Dr Francis Layoo Ocan, MSF’s medical coordinator in Kosti.
“We’ve run out of space, and we are now admitting patients in an open area and treating them on the floor because there are not enough beds,” he added.
Rising toll
MSF, which has been supporting cholera care in the region since October, reported a sharp rise in admissions from Wednesday night, when 100 new patients arrived at the cholera treatment centre.
By Friday afternoon, that figure had swelled to more than 800. At least 24 people have died, including one patient who was dead on arrival. Forty-eight others have been discharged.
“The numbers continue to rise, and keeping a detailed tally has become difficult for the team,” MSF said.
Since April 2023, Sudan has been gripped by a conflict between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The fighting has taken a toll on the country’s health infrastructure with 80 percent of health facilities in conflict-affected areas no longer functioning, according to official figures.
Sudan declared a cholera epidemic last year, with nearly 25,000 cases and 699 deaths recorded by October, according to government data.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that cholera can kill within hours if untreated, though most cases can be managed with oral rehydration and antibiotics.
The International Committee of the Red Cross last month highlighted a “disturbing pattern of attacks” on civilian infrastructure, including power stations, further worsening living conditions for millions already affected by the conflict.
White Nile state, which stretches from south of Khartoum to the South Sudanese border, has seen escalating violence this week.
A three-day RSF assault on villages about 200 kilometres north of Kosti killed more than 200 people earlier this week.
(AFP)
