Massive flooding in south-eastern Sudan could lead to the outbreak of water-borne diseases such as cholera, health authorities are warning this week.
Sudan has been experiencing some of the worst floods in its history, with 3,5-million people affected and at risk of disease, the UN says.
In Saraf Saeed, a village of 8 000 people in south-east Sudan’s Gedaref state, three of the village’s five natural wells have been contaminated by flood waters in recent weeks. Mustafa Elsayed Elkhalil, the health minister for Gedaref State, says the water is a ”real source of our health problems”.
”We have more than 800 cases of acute diarrhoea. This includes a bundle of diseases and part of it may be cholera,” says Elkhalil.
The health authority has already recorded 57 deaths from acute diarrhoea. It could not confirm how many of these deaths were a result of cholera which, if untreated, can kill within 24 hours of infection. The conditions for spreading cholera in villages such as Saraf Saeed are now ideal, largely because of inadequate sanitation.
Water which is safe for human consumption is scarce in Sudan, whether in conflict-ridden Darfur or in the capital Khartoum, where water stoppages are common. In villages like Saraf Saeed, which does not have electricity and is difficult to access, it’s an even tougher battle, says Elkhalil.
”When you talk about water in Sudan, it’s a very long story. We have no system for water surveillance. We have no standard for daily drinking water,” he explains.
Elkhalil adds that most of Saraf Saeed ”is devoid of water”, despite the current annual rainy season that began mid-June and usually lasts well into September.
”Our main water sources are surface and underground water. We also have two fast-running seasonal rivers. But most of the people don’t have home latrines and they defe-cate in the rivers. So this problem is also about changing people’s behaviour. It’s a war that must be fought,” says Elkhalil.
While the local government is struggling with infrastructure, aid agencies have heeded the call to combat water-borne diseases. Canadian-based medical supplies donor Global Medics teamed up with Muslim Aid, a UK-headquartered relief agency, to deliver water-purifying machines to Saraf Saeed this month.
The purifying machines are just an emergency measure, says Muslim Aid’s Mohamed Ashquaff. ”There’s dirty water in rivers, ponds, lakes and flood water. People will become ill if they can’t access purified water. Disease will spread,” he says.
In total 100 000 people in Gedaref state lack access to safe drinking water as a direct result of contamination by flood waters.
Ashquaff says a bigger water-purification plan is essential.
”We’re suggesting that Nomad filters be used,” he offers, referring to a water-purification device. ”The Nomad can produce 100 litres of clean water per minute. They’re also mobile, so one could move them from one village to another.”
Eighty-five-year-old Hassan Idrees Jad Kareem has lived in Saraf Saeed for the past 55 years. Looking down into one of the contaminated wells which lies along the stream that flooded it with bacteria, he describes how well-water has always been the village’s water source.
”The water was naturally clean before the floods. We need clean water,” says Kareem with concern.
Underground water from the wells is usually one of the village’s safest water supplies. Villagers lower tins tied to strings into wells to scoop up a few litres at a time.
Authorities in Gedaref have also provided centrally located tanks which pump water from wells. Chlorine is added to the tanks to further purify the water supply. Villagers collect their load in plastic buckets which they carry on their heads or in containers tied to the backs of donkeys.
Apart from contaminating wells, the heavy rainfall in Sudan has destroyed almost 100 000 homes and killed 72 people. This week the UN appealed for $20-million to provide humanitarian assistance to the 3,5 million Sudanese affected by the floods.