Save the Children reported on Thursday that cholera has resulted in the deaths of at least 23 individuals in eastern Ethiopia, an area severely affected by significant flooding. The humanitarian organization cautioned that the epidemic might escalate beyond control throughout the region.
The heavy rains associated with the El Nino weather pattern have battered Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia, triggering flash floods. These floods have caused numerous fatalities across the Horn of Africa, displacing roughly two million people.
Save the Children highlighted that within a span of two weeks, there have been 772 confirmed cases of cholera and 23 deaths in Ethiopia’s eastern Somali region, which shares a border with Somalia.
In the most affected Kelafo district, the charity expressed concern over a surge in cases among children under five, who constitute nearly 80 percent of the confirmed cases.
“A deadly combination of flooded water systems, a lack of basic sanitation services and damaged water treatment plants has driven the spike in the deadly illness,” the UK-based charity said in a statement.
The charity emphasized that at least 91 districts across Ethiopia have reported instances of cholera, a disease typically contracted from a bacterium transmitted through contaminated food or water.
Save the Children cautioned that without prompt action from governments and donors to provide affected communities with clean drinking water and sanitation facilities, the cholera outbreak in Ethiopia and the broader Horn of Africa could intensify beyond control, given the displacement caused by floodwaters.
According to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, the floods in Ethiopia have claimed the lives of at least 57 individuals, while more than 600,000 people have been displaced.
In addition, government figures indicate that Somalia has recorded 101 deaths and Kenya 120 due to the floods.
