Aftershocks: Deadly Cholera Outbreak In Haiti

Update: As of Sunday night, The New York Times reports: "Imogen Wall, a spokeswoman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, confirmed that as of Sunday, 253 had died of the disease, with 3,015 reported cases. On Saturday, Haitian officials had reported 208 dead and 2,674 cases."

An outbreak of cholera has been documented in the area surrounding the lower Artibonite region of Haiti by the staff of PIH’s sister organization Zanmi Lasante (ZL,) working with the Haitian Ministry of Health and other partners. As of Friday morning October 22, 2010; there have been more than 2000 cases of acute watery diarrhea and 160 deaths reported at the facilities in St. Marc, Petite Riviere d’Artibonite, Mirebalais, Lascahobas, and Verretes; the death rate since Tuesday night, October 19, 2010, has been approximately 10 percent.

NPR reports that officials are worried that the outbreak might spread to the tens of thousands of people living in unsanitary conditions in camps around the capital.