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Cholera Outbreak Claims Ten More Lives in South Africa 


FILE - Health workers treat cholera patients at the Bwaila Hospital in Lilongwe central Malawi, Jan. 11, 2023. South Africa reported its first cholera death in February, after the virus arrived in the country from Malawi.
FILE - Health workers treat cholera patients at the Bwaila Hospital in Lilongwe central Malawi, Jan. 11, 2023. South Africa reported its first cholera death in February, after the virus arrived in the country from Malawi.

The provincial health department in the South African province of Gauteng on Sunday announced 19 new cases of Cholera in Hammanskraal, including 10 deaths.

South Africa reported its first cholera death in February, after the virus arrived in the country from Malawi.

It was unclear how many cholera cases there was nationally as of Sunday, but the most populous province of Gauteng, where Johannesburg and Pretoria are situated, has been hardest hit.

Cholera can cause acute diarrhea, vomiting and weakness and is mainly spread by contaminated food or water. It can kill within hours if untreated.

The last outbreak in South Africa was in 2008/2009 when about 12,000 cases were reported following an outbreak in neighboring Zimbabwe, which led to a surge of imported cases and subsequent local transmission.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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