Description of the situation
16 March 1998
Disease Outbreak Reported
As of 11 March, 945 cases of cholera with 18 deaths (case fatality rate 1.9%) have been reported since the beginning of the epidemic which started in Mbéni, 40 km north of the capital Moroni, in early January. Over 50% (476) of the cases occurred in Moroni where most cases have been treated at the El Maarouf Hospital. The other 469 cases have been treated in the following health districts: Mitsamiouli (259), Mbéni (105), Foumbouni (80), Ouzioini (18), and Mitsoudjé (7). All cases occurred on Grand Comore Island.
The National Cholera Control Committee was set up in collaboration with WHO to implement a control and preparedness plan. WHO, along with representatives of La Cooperation Fran¢aise, Médecins Sans Frontières, Médecins du Monde, and the national Red Cross assessed the situation in February. Several areas that needed strengthening to control the outbreak were identified, the foremost being improved personal, domestic and environmental hygiene, including the supply of safe water.