86 warded over cholera in Kota Belud

Star: KOTA KINABALU: Eighty-six villagers in the Sabah district of Kota Belud, some 60km from here, have landed in the district hospital, 44 of them confirmed to be suffering from cholera.
Usukan state assemblyman Japlin Akim said the remaining 42 villagers were under observation as tests showed they could be cholera carriers.
All those affected were from Kampung Kuala Abai or Kampung Suang Punggur, which came under the constituency of Japlin, the state Assistant Minister of Agriculture and Food Industries.
He said 49 medical personnel from the districts of Papar and Kuala Penyu were rushed to Kota Belud to assist their counterparts at the district hospital.
Some patients at the isolation wards were seen sleeping on the floor due to insufficient beds.
“Apart from providing treatment, medical teams are also advising the people on preventive measures, including general cleanliness,” Japlin said, adding that there were no casualties.
Among those waiting at the Kota Belud hospital yesterday was Kampung Kuala Abai housewife Paidah Sungku, 38, whose husband, Dalim Asil, 40, was being treated for cholera.
She said the outbreak began on May 2 when two villagers were admitted to the hospital after being found suffering from the disease.
Paidah said medical personnel went to her village on Sunday to conduct tests on the villagers, including taking stool samples.
They returned two days later and asked those infected to immediately go to the hospital for treatment.
Kota Belud hospital director Dr Nelson Maison said the outbreak was under control.
The outbreak came exactly a year after about 100 pupils and a cook in Semporna district were admitted to hospital for the disease.
The Semporna outbreak was detected in May last year when the cook at SK Bubul II, who was suffering from fever, diarrhoea and vomiting, was rushed to the hospital.
Subsequently, 106 pupils from the school and seven students from the nearby SMK Kabongan II were also admitted.
Authorities in the district ordered the canteens in both schools to close.