Over 1730 People at Risk of Disease Outbreaks in Homa Bay

Over 1730 people have been displaced by floods in Homa Bay County, and due to the congestion at the camps, they are at risk of contracting diseases.

Women and children are at a high risk of contracting waterborne and airborne diseases like malaria and waterborne diseases that the stagnant water around their camps will accommodate.

Willis Omullo, a climate change ambassador and a flood victim, lamented that sanitation in Chuowe Beach is worrying since the floods have submerged the latrines used by the community.

“All the sanitary facilities have been plunged into the village's only source of water. This will lead to high risks of cholera because of the dirty water we will be using at our camps,” Mr Omullo said.

Omullo also fears history repeating itself since the last outbreak of cholera in Chuowe Beach claimed seven lives, and he fears that with the floods, the community might lose triple the number.

“Chuowe dispensary was built after the outbreak of cholera that saw 7 people dead and with the floods back sanitation is already an issue and I fear that we might head back to burying triple the number we lost last year,” he lamented.

Florence Adhiambo, a victim of the floods from the Kobala sub-location in Wang’ Chieng’ location, said that she fears the outbreak of diseases like malaria that will soon attack their children and families due to the floods.

“The stagnating water poses high rates for outbreaks of waterborne diseases like cholera and malaria that will soon infect the victims because of the potential breeding sites for the diseases,” Adhiambo lamented.

Adhiambo called upon the government to provide swift medical care to the camps to help curb the high risks of disease outbreaks and put enough medicine in case of epidemics.

“The water around our camps will soon turn into breeding sites for malaria, cholera and other diseases that will affect our people, we are calling upon the government to provide adequate medical support to our camps to help fight against these diseases,” Adhiambo reiterated.

Samuel Omondi, a Red Cross coordinator, on the other hand, said that a few cases of disease outbreak have already been reported in Kobuya, Bala, Osodo, and Simbi camps following the floods, which continue to threaten the affected victims.

“We have been doing assessments on the potential threats that come with floods, so far we have treated cases of diarrhea, common cold and coughs, and we are also ready to offer medical help in case of increase in the outbreak,” said Mr Omondi.

Victims of the floods are also being asked to maintain a clean and safe environment to reduce the risks of infections and the spread of airborne diseases.