A 3-year-old boy who had not been out of Port-au-Prince tested positive for cholera, health authorities told the Associated Press early this week. Dozens more city residents suspected of having cholera were being tested.
The outbreak has killed at least 544 people in Haiti. Health officials are concerned that flooding after Hurricane Tomas passed through on Friday and Saturday increased the risk of the disease spreading in the country.
According to
this AP story on msnbc.com, Partners in Health said that living conditions in Port-au-Prince's earthquake camps have "deteriorated as a result of the storm. Standing water, mud, lack of garbage collection and limited sanitation availability make the camps a potential flashpoint for cholera outbreak."
Justin Alce, Heifer's country director in Haiti, passes along that one of Heifer's partners in the locality of Ivwa is reporting 26 cholera deaths in the communities of K-louis and Rousseo.
Hurricane Tomas has been devastating as well for Heifer Haiti, with heavy loss of crops, houses and animals as well as the destruction of roads and other infrastructure. We'll pass along any more updates as we receive them.
To read more about Heifer's plans for earthquake rehabilitation in Haiti, read our
World Ark update here and in the Winter 2011 issue in January.
Photo by Bryan Clifton, Heifer International
