Algeria: Ministry of Health Identifies Source Of Cholera Epidemic

The Ministry of Health, Population and Hospital Reform has been able to identify the source of the cholera epidemic which has spread in several parts of Algeria since the beginning of last August and is concentrated in the provinces of Blida, Tipaza and the capital Algiers.

The source of the cholera epidemic, which is more concentrated in the province of Blida, has been confirmed by the Ministry of Health, according to the latest in-depth analyses conducted by the Ministry of Health at the Wadi Beni Azza in the central province of Blida.

According to the Health Ministry, the cholera epidemic was identified at the Wadi Beni Azza in Blida province, precisely at a valley that includes water streams stemming from the Chrea Mountains and reaching the capital.

The Health Ministry added that the cholera epidemic is now being confined to Blida province.

According to the services of health Minister Mr. Mokhtar Hasbellaoui, the cholera virus has spread over several water streams in the valley.

The virus was spotted through the relevant analyses in the localities of Beni Achour, Beni Tamou, Khazrouna, and in the course of the valley adjacent to the Chaker football stadium in Blida province.

According to the health prevention Director at the health Ministry namely Mr Djamel Fourar, the results of the analyses confirmed that the suspicions were linked to Wadi Beni Azza small river, which passes through the area of “Khazrouna” in the municipality of Beni Merad, the area that saw the outbreak of the first cases of cholera before spreading to affect other people settled in the region.

The latter also indicated that the health Ministry services are currently inspecting a number of suspicious points of the course of the valley, including in the neighborhood of Beni Tamou, in order to direct the necessary clean-up operations in the whole region.

This comes at a time when the Ministry of Health has begun its process of close coordination with other sectors of activity in order to drastically curb the spread of the cholera epidemic by putting in place stringent preventive measures to combat the virus.

The Ministry of Health, Population and Hospital Reform further stated that the number of confirmed cases of cholera was set at 74 cases.

The same source added that 39 confirmed cases had been registered in Blida province, 15 confirmed cases in the western province of Tipaza and 15 others were recorded in the capital Algiers.

The Ministry meanwhile confirmed that 132 infected citizens had already left hospital after a full recovery, but in contrast, some media sources reported the registration of a suspicious cholera case coming from France to Algeria.