It has been confirmed that a cholera outbreak has hit a repentant insurgents’ rehabilitation camp in the Tandari Mashamari area of Maiduguri and that at least two or three of the camp’s inhabitants have died from the virulent disease.

Members of the host community raised the alarm by informing authorities as soon as the outbreak was discovered. They hope the outbreak has been caught in time and that it will be prevented from spreading to other parts of the community.

Bulama Laminu Abdullahi, the community ward head of Tandari Mashamari, told RNI that the first patient suffering from cholera was found among the repentant insurgents a month ago.

“Since then, we have seen an ambulance going in and out of the camp frequently every day. We were told that two or three of the camp’s inhabitants had died. Primary Healthcare Development Agency (PHDA) workers from the Jere Local Government Area confirmed the outbreak to Borno State’s health ministry as well as to some traditional leaders.”

Abdullahi said since the confirmation, community members had seen many of the health agency’s staff working to fumigate the camp. But still the ambulance was seen often coming in and out. Most of the workers were treating patients and others were fumigating and sanitising the camp.

“We hear the wailing siren of the ambulance several times every day.”

Since residents had heard about the cholera outbreak, they had held a meeting with members of Tandari Mashamari Development Association (TMDA) and, in collaboration with the association, community members had started sanitising the environment, filling mini lakes of stagnant water with sand and clearing drainage systems as part of strategic measures to safeguard the community from the outbreak.

“But,” Abdullahi said, “the major problem we are facing is the sewage or waste water that is coming out of the camp. It is really affecting us. The smell is too terrible and the flowing of the waste water is adding to the existing stagnant water bodies caused by the rainy season.

“We have asked the Borno State government for help and to take all necessary proactive measures to control the outbreak. We cannot let it spread to other parts of the community. The government needs to fumigate the area and disinfect the stagnant water bodies and drainage systems. It must also do something to stop the flow of sewage inside and outside the camp. If the government does not act immediately, the outbreak is sure to hit other parts of the community and we could all become infected.”

Bura Tandari, a resident of the Tandari Mashamari community, told RNI that in the past four to five days they had seen the ambulance going in and out of the repentant insurgents’ camp frequently.

“We have also seen people fumigating the environment as well as clearing and getting rid of waste matter inside the camp. They are obviously trying to protect and safeguard the camp’s inhabitants to stop more of them becoming infected with this life-threatening disease.”

He said apart from the wailing ambulance going in and out of the camp, he had not heard about anyone dying from cholera.

“No one has told us whether any of the inhabitants have died. All we see is the clean-up that is happening inside the camp and the comings and goings of the ambulance.”

Tandari said that residents of the community were very concerned about the cholera outbreak in the repentant insurgents’ camp.

“Since the camp was officially opened about four years ago, there have not been any health issues that we know of. That’s why it is important that the government acts immediately to put all the necessary measures in place to ensure the cholera outbreak does not spread to the whole community because that would be a disaster.”

HumAngle reported on Saturday, September 17, that there had been “several” deaths recorded in the past two days after a cholera outbreak hit one of the Maiduguri camps, where people associated with the Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’way Wa’l-Jihād (JAS), better known as Boko Haram, were being kept.

The news agency quoted Zuwaira Gambo, the Borno State commissioner for women affairs and social development, as saying that health personnel had confirmed the loss of two lives to the disease.

It said earlier information obtained from sources working at one of the rehabilitation camps known as Shokari Camp was that up to 20 lives had been lost between Friday and Saturday. However, the commissioner insisted that “only two persons died”. Gambo said the figures that were being quoted were “unfounded”.

“I don’t know where this figure is coming from, but I can assure you that what we have was only two deaths,” she said.

RNI reporters were denied access to the camp and the health workers inside refused to say anything on the matter.

However, the health workers were wearing protective clothing and, in just more than 30 minutes, the RNI reporter observed an ambulance coming and going a couple of times from the camp. However, no one was willing to talk.

SHETTIMA LAWAN MONGUNO