Diarrhea oubreak kills child, afflicts 40 others in Eastern Samar

TACLOBAN CITY, March 24 (PNA) – The Department of Health (DOH) sent a team to Dolores, Eastern Samar on Friday to check the reported diarrhea outbreak that killed a child and afflicted 40 others since last week.

Roderick Boyd Cerro, chief of the regional epidemiology and surveillance unit, said they received the report late Thursday afternoon about sporadic diarrhea cases in Dolores town, some 254 kilometers east from this city.

“This is alarming because the disease has already claimed a child’s life and it spreads faster compared to recent cases in Samar provinces,” Cerro said in a mobile phone interview.

The young fatality from Barangay (village) 2, whose identity was not immediately known, suffered dehydration, according to Cerro, adding that at least 13 victims were rushed to the Dolores Community Health Center.

The patients vomited and suffered abdominal cramps, watery stools, body weakness and fever after drinking contaminated water, he said.

“With the onset of the dry season, people tend to get drinking water from open wells and other unsafe sources that can cause diarrhea,” Cerro added.

The team brought with them some medicines to treat victims who have seriously fallen ill.

Aquatabs and chlorine are up for distribution to curb the contamination in affected villages.

Last week, the DOH investigated the spread of diarrhea in Hinabangan, Samar where 108 people were afflicted. In the last week of February, at least 208 people got sick of diarrhea in the province.

To curb diarrhea, the public are advised to wash hands before cooking foods, wash foods before cooking, cover foods, practice personal hygiene, practice proper disposal of waste and use of sanitary toilets. (PNA)
SARWELL Q. MENIANO