About 30 young children die in Imo State following a fresh outbreak of diarrhoea

HEALTH officials have revealed that as many as 30 children have died from diarrhoea in Imo State after a recent fresh outbreak that came about as a result of a lack of access to clean potable water.

 

Diarrhoea is a common disease in communities where people do not have access to clean water and rely on streams and wells for their supplies. Imo State has 637 autonomous communities and many of them, especially in rural areas lack access to potable water.

 

Speaking while receiving a delegation from the Nigeria Agip Oil Company, the Imo State health commissioner Ngozi Njoku, said that the death toll from the outbreak of the deadly disease has risen to 30 over the last few weeks. She added that several other victims affected by the scourge were receiving treatment in various hospitals across the state.

 

According to Ms Njoku, four children died last month as a result of the infection in Nekede, in the Owerri West Local Government Area. She added that 65 suspected cases had been reported in the Ikeduru Local Government Area, while areas like Orlu, Owerri West, Ohaji/Egbema, Owerri North and Ngor-Okpala had similarly recorded cases of the dreaded disease.