Borno State’s commissioner for health has confirmed the deaths of 43 people as a result of a suspected cholera outbreak.

Juliana Bitrus told a press conference in Maiduguri on Tuesday that by August 30, 559 suspected cases had been recorded and there had been hospital admissions in seven local government areas of the state.

The affected areas were Gwoza, Kaga, Hawul, Magumeri, Damboa, Maiduguri Metropolitan and Jere.

Bitrus attributed the latest outbreak to open defecation, poor sanitation and hygiene.

She said many people living in internally displaced persons’ camps had fallen ill and they were particularly susceptible because of their crowded living conditions and the lack of proper sanitation and hygiene.

Bitrus advised people to wash their hands regularly before eating and after visiting the toilet, to cover their food and water properly, to warm leftover food before consumption and to stop open defecation.

Health workers in the Goni Kachallari area of Jere Local Government Area said 10 people had died and many had been hospitalised.

Bukar Kawu Lurwan, who works at the Jere primary health department, advised people to wash their hands properly and regularly, avoid open defecation, wash their toilets well every day and wash their hands after using them, and to wash plates with detergents before and after using them.

Fatima Bukar, a resident of Goni Kachallari, told RNI reporter Falmata Tijjani Bukar that the cholera outbreak had affected many people in the community and she knew of five people who had died as a result of the acute diarrhoeal illness.

Bukar had told her children to wash their hands regularly.

She said since she had heard about the outbreak on the radio, she had continued to observe proper hygiene to protect her family from infection.

Ali Muhammad, also a resident of Goni Kachallari, said he was aware of the outbreak.  Seven residents who lived close by had been infected, four of whom had died before they could be rushed to hospital to receive proper treatment. The other three were in hospital now.

Muhammad he said he was doing his best to ensure that he and his family maintained strict hygiene and sanitation practices, following the advice of health professionals.

Bitrus told journalists at the press conference that the Gwoza Local Government Area had 354 suspected cholera infections and it had recorded 18 deaths. Hawul had recorded 126 cases with 11 deaths. The Maiduguri metropolis had the four suspected cases but no one had died.

She said the Borno State government had activated primary healthcare emergency operation centres and had established rapid response teams at local government level to strengthen the surveillance system and to detect and get treatment for suspected cases.

She urged the public to take precautionary measures against the disease by observing strict hygiene and sanitation practices and she advised people to treat water with Aquatabs or chlorination to ensure purification.