Health

UN prepares for possible cholera outbreak in quake-hit Afghanistan

'Cholera outbreaks in the aftermath of earthquakes are of particular and serious concern,' say OCHA

Reuters
June 24, 2022
An Afghan woman sitting on a hospital bed in Kabul. — Reuters
An Afghan woman sitting on a hospital bed in Kabul. — Reuters

The UN humanitarian office (OCHA) said preparations were underway to avoid a cholera outbreak in Afghanistan after Wednesday's earthquake, saying that half a million cases of acute, watery diarrhoea had already been reported.

"Choleraoutbreaks in theaftermath ofearthquakes are of particular and serious concern," OCHA said in a statement on Thursday. "Preparations to avoid anoutbreakareunderway."

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OCHA also said that it was seeking to confirm that search and rescue operations were nearly finishedafterTaliban authorities indicated late on Wednesday that they were 90% completed.

An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 killed about 1,000 people, injured thousands, and destroyed more than 3,000 houses in Afghanistan on Wednesday.


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