15 die of waterborne disease in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - At least 15 people were killed due to breakout of gastroenteritis disease Monday at a hospital in Dera Ismail Khan of Pakistan’s Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa province which has been severely hit by floods, hospital sources said.

The waterborne gastroenteritis killed several dozen people last week as more cases have also been reported elsewhere across the flood-plagued country, Xinhua reported.

Over two weeks of heavy rains and floods have so far killed more than 1,400 people, displaced 20 million others and destroyed about 700,000 homes in Pakistan which is experiencing worst flood in its history.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported a case of fatal cholera disease over the weekend. It has estimated that some 36,000 people have been affected by breakout of cholera in the country, which is entangled with waterborne diseases.

The worst-hit northwest province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is now faced with epidemic breakout as not only carcasses of thousands of cattle but decomposition of human bodies has posed a new challenge.

The Pakistani health ministry has sent a red alert to the WHO for starting an emergency treatment against the diseases which are spreading faster along the flowing polluted water.