MAIDUGURI, Nigeria – A devastating cholera epidemic that started in early May has claimed at least 74 lives and sickened more than 7,800 people in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state, according to the international aid organization Médecins Sans Frontières, which announced the figures on Tuesday.
As of June 7, MSF reported that 7,850 suspected cases have been documented across 14 local government areas, with the state ministry of health reporting that new infections are climbing dramatically each day.
The epidemic is putting enormous pressure on an already weakened healthcare infrastructure in an area that has been devastated by a 17-year Islamist insurgency, massive population displacement, and inadequate water and sanitation systems, creating conditions that could lead to broader transmission if efforts to control the disease fail.
In response to the crisis, MSF has partnered with the state ministry of health to establish a cholera treatment facility in the regional capital Maiduguri.
“Every day, we see more people arriving with severe watery diarrhoea and dehydration, many of whom have travelled long distances to reach care,” stated Bienfait Tombola, MSF project medical coordinator for the surge response in Maiduguri.
MSF reports treating 7,439 patients, with an average of approximately 230 new admissions daily. The organization recorded more than 500 cases on June 5 alone, marking the highest single-day admission count since response efforts began.
The waterborne illness flourishes in environments where clean water and proper sanitation are unavailable. According to MSF, officials are preparing a vaccination initiative while the aid organization continues expanding treatment capabilities, hygiene measures, and disease monitoring to stop the outbreak’s spread.
