Health workers are increasingly concerned about the risk of a diarrhoea outbreak in the hills and southern plains of Nepal if adequate medical supplies, health assistance and sanitation are not provided.
"Due to a lack of medicines and other necessary supplies like saline water, especially in remote areas, a large number of people could suffer from this disease," said government health officer, Rakesh Thakur. He expressed concern that in the past few months, dozens of people have been killed due to diarrhoea, following floods and landslides around the country.
Many remote villages in districts in the eastern Terai and western hills are vulnerable, as they lack medicines, doctors and sanitation facilities, according to local government health officers.
In the eastern Terai district of Saptari, nearly 20 people have been killed since July when heav y floods devastated the area, destroying houses, farms and displacing many poor families, according to the Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS).
In addition, more than 20 people have died in the hill district of Kalikot, 500km northwest of the capital, Kathmandu, considered one of the most flood-prone areas, according to NRCS. More than 500 people from this village alone had been affected by the disease.
NRCS officials say there is a need for more humanitarian support for those at high risk of flood-related diseases, and diarrhoea is the worst threat, especially for young children and infants.
Urgent help needed
Since July, the monsoon floods have hit nearly 49 districts. The floods in the Terai and landslides in the hills affected more than 580,000 people, destroying 71,000 houses, displacing 24,368 families and killing 168 people.
The problems became much worse with heavy water logging for a long period, recurring torrential rainfall thereby cutting communication links, including roads and telephones, all of which made humanitarian assistance delivery difficult.
In the worst affected districts, residents are still vulnerable to diarrhoea and cholera, but they lack access to basic services, said local aid workers. They explained that clean drinking water supply, roads, bridges and livelihood services are still in poor condition.
"The number of patients is growing every day and there is a need for more saline water and medical supplies," said Satya Dev Giri of Sagarmatha Zonal Hospital in Rajbiraj.
"The main problem in remote villages is a lack of even a basic knowledge of sanitation and clean drinking water," said a local health volunteer, Saraswati Shah. She added that if only the villagers were aware of how to prevent diarrhoea, they would not even require a doctor or medicines to combat such a relatively easily curable disease.
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