Syria: cholera returns after 15 years, also due to prolonged drought: almost 600 patients hospitalized in two weeks, a third are serious

ROME – The cholera epidemic in Syria is spreading throughout the country: over 13,000 suspected cases reported, while the death toll rises to 60. In collaboration with local health authorities, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is supporting a 65-bed cholera treatment center in Raqqa, where nearly 600 patients have been hospitalized in just two weeks, including a third in serious condition. According to the Raqqa National Hospital, there have been no confirmed cases of cholera in the north-west of the country since 2007. The cholera outbreak has also spread to Lebanon, where MSF teams are carrying out awareness-raising activities in Beirut, in the valley of the Bekaa and in the Akkar district, where the first case was recorded.

The few rains and the dry Euphrates. The prolonged drought and the low levels of the Euphrates waters have contributed to the outbreak of the epidemic that has mainly affected some areas of the Syrian North-West and North-East since September. In the countryside near the Euphrates, the main source of water for the affected communities, there are small water treatment plants, but many communities still go to the river to stock up on the water that is contaminated. Extremely contagious, cholera is an intestinal diarrheal infection caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae found in dirty or stagnant waters. By causing diarrhea and vomiting, cholera leads to rapid dehydration and, without prompt treatment, can kill within hours.

MSF has increased staff and supplies. At the same time it is collaborating with other local humanitarian organizations to provide sanitation services, from wastewater treatment to chlorination of the water transported by tank trucks. Epidemiological data are used to define the areas of Raqqa most affected and define the priority areas where to intervene. Despite the efforts of local associations and international humanitarian organizations, access to clean water remains a serious problem. In 2021, water-related activities and sanitation projects represented only 4% of the humanitarian response budget in Syria, less than a third of what was spent in 2020. 15 years after the last cholera outbreak in Syria, It is essential to raise awareness of how it spreads and how it should be treated. A group of Raqqa community workers working in the cholera center meets patients and their families to inform them about measures to prevent the spread of cholera and how to recognize the first symptoms and the first actions to take in the presence of a case suspected.