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On the same program, Dr. John Arbus, Deputy Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said:
"It's probably clear to us that this will not go away for several years. We'll need to (stay vigilant). This front-full surge of cases will come down, but there will probably be sporadic cases in the future, now that the bacteria is well established in the environment."
The first cases were confirmed about a week earlier. Then cholera exploded and made headlines. It struck a prison in Mirebalais near St. Marc where Lyon used to work. At least six deaths were reported, another 25 confirmed ill. The prison houses about 250 inmates, at least 80% awaiting trial, not convicted of a crime. Most, in fact, are likely innocent. Yet all of them were exposed, can't get out, are malnourished, and get unsafe water under "horrible sanitation conditions....So people (there) based on accusations (alone) have now been handed a death sentence," Lyon explained.
More frightening is that "cholera will not go away in Haiti until the underlying conditions" change, meaning poverty, hunger, malnutrition, unsafe water, poor sanitation, densely populated neighborhoods, and overcrowded outdoor camps for up to 1.5 million in and around Port-au-Prince.
Wherever there's poor infrastructure, "this disease will be around....it's a very frightening time for the country," authorities understating the danger or potential numbers already affected. It's likely thousands more than reported, most ill, others dead or dying, even though reports now say conditions are stabilizing.
On October 25, Times writer Deborah Sontag headlined, "Amid Cholera Outbreak in Haiti, Misery and Hope," saying:
Located in St. Marc, St. Nicholas Hospital's courtyard had, "Scores of children and adults....doubled over or stretched out on every available surface, racked by convulsive stomach disorder or limp with dehydration." For them, life hangs in the balance. Most treated in time pull through, Medical News Today's Christian Nordqvist saying it's done "with cheap and simple antibiotics, fluids and oral rehydration solution." Otherwise, death is painful and likely.
"Many people in our neighborhood have died of diarrhea and vomiting," said Gerda Pierre, her son, aged four, stricken with the disease like many others. Through October 31, the reported death toll was 337 with over 4,000 confirmed ill, mostly in central and northern Haiti, though small outbreaks in Port-au-Prince are alarming. UN and local health officials warned of a potential epidemic, putting "tens of thousands" or more at risk.
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