Emergency workers in the Comoros on Thursday appealed for medicines to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases following recent heavy rains which have left some 20,000 people on the tiny island of Moheli without safe drinking water. Red Crescent officials told IRIN that a severe storm on Saturday, which resulted in flooding, had destroyed the island's water distribution system. "Because of the island's geographic location, the population is generally at risk of contracting waterborne diseases such as typhoid, cholera and polio. But the recent flooding has had a severe impact on many families. People are now a lot more vulnerable," said Said Abdou Combo, Red Crescent disaster co-ordinator and member of the Indian Ocean Rapid Intervention Platform (PIROI). An estimated 300 people in seven villages have been left homeless. "Many families have moved from their villages and have taken refuge with relatives. Some have moved to higher ground in the area. Those who have remained in their villages do not have enough food because the rains washed away their maize fields. In some cases cattle were also washed away," Combo said. Close to 80 percent of Moheli's 36,000 inhabitants make a living from agriculture and fishing. Most homes are made of mud and straw. The Red Crescent has appealed for potable water, food, clothes and basic drugs. The Union of Comoros is just off the east coast of Africa and consists of the islands of Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
