At least 37 deaths have been recorded in 30 states including Lagos and Ogun State, following the outbreak of cholera in the country.
The Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Health, Dr Kemi Ogunyemi, said the state had recorded an additional six cholera deaths, which increased the number of deaths to 21.
Ogunyemi who blamed the increase of cases to the Ileya Festival, stated that the number of cases in the state had risen to 401.
“The rise in cases was anticipated, following the Ileya festivities, during which large gatherings occurred’ she said.
She, however, noted that suspected cases were subsiding across LGAs, particularly previously affected LGAs, due to the state government’s interventions and surveillance efforts.
Ogunyemi said the Lagos State government, through the Ministry of Health and other sister agencies, was maintaining rigorous surveillance and monitoring of the situation and implementing planned programs and activities to curb the spread.
“The ministry of Health, in collaboration with the state Ministry of environment and its agency, the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, LASEPA, continues to collect samples of water sources, food, and beverages to identify the source of contamination,” she stated in a statement released by the Director of Public Affairs in the state Ministry of Health, Tunbosun Ogunbanwo on Thursday.
Ogunyemi urged citizens to seek medical attention immediately after they experienced symptoms, such as watery diarrhoea, vomiting, abdominal pain, general malaise, and fever, stressing that cholera treatment was provided free of charge at all public health facilities.
Also, the Ogun State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker, disclosed that the state had recorded one death and 14 cases.
She stated that a 62-year-old woman in Ijebu-Igbo who contacted the disease while nursing her child, was for now the only known death in the state.
“A 62-year-old lady who contracted cholera from her sick son died in Ijebu Igbo. Five others have also been hospitalised across four local government areas of Ota, Abeokuta South, Obafemi Owode, and Ijebu North
“The cumulative total cases since last week are 14 with one fatality,” she said.
She urged residents of the state to maintain good hygiene and avoid drinking water from unknown sources.
“I want to call on Ogun people to keep calm and be on the alert for anyone with the symptoms of cholera. They should report any suspected case of cholera to our disease surveillance team,” she noted.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, in its recent report, said from January 1 to June 11, 2024, over 1,141 suspected and over 65 confirmed cases of cholera, resulting in over 30 deaths, had been reported from 96 local government areas in 30 states.
With the six additional deaths in Lagos, and one death in Ogun, the fatalities are no fewer than 37.
Cholera, a severe diarrheal illness, caused by infection with the bacterium vibrio cholerae, spreads primarily through contaminated water and food, thriving rapidly in unsanitary conditions.
Cholera: Death Toll Increases To 37 As Lagos Records 401 Cases is first published on The Whistler Newspaper