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Pakistani officials on Wednesday expressed concern over the spread of a water-borne disease among thousands of flood victims as heavy monsoon rains began to recede in many parts of the country.
Mass flooding from rains has killed at least 1,162 people since mid-June, a phenomenon experts have blamed on climate change.
Some doctors said they initially saw mostly flood-affected patients, but are now treating people with diarrhea, skin infections and other water-borne illnesses in flood-affected parts of the country.
The development has forced the government to deploy more medical teams and dispatch medicines, many of whom live in tents and makeshift housing, in addition to providing clean drinking water to survivors.
A day earlier, record-breaking flooding prompted the United Nations to formally issue a $160 million emergency funding appeal to the impoverished Islamic country, where about a million homes have been damaged or destroyed.
Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho, the health minister of the country’s worst-hit Sindh province, said officials had set up 4,210 medical camps in the flood-hit areas of the province to treat victims now suffering from skin and water-borne diseases Common during floods.
The World Health Organization began helping Pakistani authorities treat people injured in the rain and floods.
In a statement, the agency said it was working to increase surveillance for acute diarrhea, cholera and other infectious diseases to avoid their further spread, and was delivering medicines and medical supplies to health facilities.
“WHO is working with health authorities to respond quickly and effectively on the ground,” said Dr Parisha Mahipala, WHO representative in Pakistan.
“Our main priorities now are to ensure rapid access to essential health services for flood-affected populations, (to) strengthen and expand disease surveillance, outbreak prevention and control, and ensure strong health cluster coordination.”
Authorities say water-borne diseases among flood victims are now common across the country.
“Initially we took in injured people, but now diarrhoea is common,” said Farhad Khan, a doctor in charge of the medical camp set up in the northwestern town of Charsadda.
It was one of the worst-hit areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, and floods have killed 257 people since mid-June.
With the support of the military, rescue workers and volunteers, Pakistani authorities have been working to evacuate the trapped people to safer places.
Military helicopters continued to evacuate flood victims and deliver food to remote areas on Wednesday, according to a statement released by the military.
It said it had deployed at least 6,500 troops to assist in rescue and relief operations.
Rescuers are also using boats to evacuate stranded people from remote villages in southern Sindh and eastern Punjab provinces, according to government officials.
During his visit to the flood-hit Swat Valley, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif promised that everyone displaced by the floods would be rehabilitated.
In a televised address, Shahbaz thanked UN Secretary-General António Guterres for responding to Pakistan’s request and called for $160 million in emergency funding to help flood victims.
Guterres urged the world on Tuesday: “Let’s stop sleepwalking towards the destruction of our planet by climate change.
“Sharif’s visit came days after a turbulent Swat river destroyed the iconic new Honeymoon Hotel in the northwestern tourist resort of Karam. Tourists and staff left the hotel in accordance with government evacuation instructions and there were no casualties, residents of Karam said. , where many streets are still flooded.
Pakistan said it had received aid from some countries and others were sending aid. The damage cost the economy $10 billion, according to preliminary government estimates.
With the evacuation over, officials are now focusing on providing food and clean drinking water to flood victims, said Kamran Bangash, a spokesman for the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provincial government.
“We are concerned about waterborne disease outbreaks in the affected areas,” he told The Associated Press.
Hundreds of people have contracted the disease across the province, he said.
“Floods have badly affected hundreds of thousands of people in recent weeks. We don’t want them to suffer again; this time because there is no clean water, which can be avoided,” Bangash said.
Although the rain stopped three days ago, large swathes of the country are still underwater, with the main rivers Indus and Swat still rising.
The National Disaster Management Agency has warned emergency services to remain on high alert, saying flooding in the next 24 hours could cause further damage.
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