Haiti faces rise in cholera cases after flooding caused by Hurricane Sandy

Nov 6 2012

"Flooding in Haiti caused by Hurricane Sandy has triggered a surge in cholera, with three deaths and almost 300 suspected cases, adding to a death toll from the storm of 54," the Financial Times reports (Mander, 11/2). "Already struggling to recover from the effects of Hurricane Isaac in August, which in turn set back rebuilding from the earthquake of January 2010, Haiti now faces renewed crises on multiple fronts," PBS NewsHour's "The Rundown" writes (Lazaro, 11/2). "Three days of torrential downpours and strong winds brought by Hurricane Sandy destroyed much of Haiti's fragile agriculture and have put a million and a half Haitians at risk for hunger, the United Nations' humanitarian-aid coordination office said over the weekend," according to the Wall Street Journal, which notes, "Potential food-price increases worry international and Haitian officials" (Arnesen, 11/4).

According to the U.N. News Centre, "[t]here are approximately 1.2 million people ... facing food insecurity in the country, which is already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere" (11/1). "[A] spokesperson for the [WHO] reported that access to health services and restocking supplies was limited as rivers had become impassable and roads had been obstructed," the news service reports in a separate article, adding, "It also warned that poor sanitary conditions could increase the risk of water-borne diseases such as cholera, which is still endemic in the country" (11/2). "The Haitian government has renewed calls for international emergency aid to help the country deal with the aftermath of" the storm, BBC News writes (11/5).