Cholera outbreak strikes Zimbabwe

By Jeffrey Moyo

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AA) - Hundred have died in Zimbabwe from a cholera outbreak, according to the Health Ministry.

A total of 905 cholera cases were confirmed Wednesday while 4,609 were treated as suspected cases.

The ministry said 30 of the deaths had been confirmed as being a result of cholera after laboratory tests were performed.

Zambia has recorded more than 5,000 cholera cases since last month, subsequently forcing authorities to enforce restrictions to curtail the spread of the disease, including limiting the numbers of attendees at funerals and banning social gatherings in areas where they fear diseases have accelerated like Manicaland and Masvingo provinces.

Poor sanitation coupled with scarcities of clean water has resulted in regular outbreaks, with many, especially in urban areas, going for months without access to clean running water.

More than 4,000 Zimbabweans were killed in an outbreak in 2008.