South Sudan says malaria outbreak to blame for mysterious death of 89 people

JUBA – South Sudan’s government has announced that local and international experts have concluded that mysterious disease that killed around 89 people in Fangak County of Jonglei state last month is malaria.

This comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) said it had sent international experts to the Jonglei area to determine the cause of the then unknown illness that sparked concerns among locals in Jonglei and other states experiencing floods.

“The Ministry of health with its partners has deployed teams on the ground who have clearly identified the health issues on the ground, the reported illness is an upsurge of malaria due to flooding situation,” Dr. Samson Paul Baba the Acting Undersecretary of South Sudan health ministry said on Thursday.

He said that On 13 November 2021, the ministry of health received a report of several deaths from an undiagnosed illness from Fangak county local authorities, affecting mostly elderly and children aged 1-14 years reported symptoms included diarrhea, high fever, joint pain, vomiting, body weakness, loss of appetite and chest pain.

“On 8 December 2021, a follow-up mission by the ministry of health rapid response team was deployed for further investigation. According to the investigation report, the team could not verify the 89 deaths reported by the local authorities, however, the investigation found an upsurge of malaria cases in the area,” he said.

“The team reported occurrence of illness in the community presenting symptoms and signs of malaria (fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and loss of appetite, in one health facility, out of 162 cases 79 (49 percent) were reported as malaria,” he added.

He said that the state ministry of health, Jonglei state, and partners deployed a team of health experts comprising of epidemiologists, surveillance officers, clinical officers, and laboratory experts to conduct a fact-finding mission and analyze the situation on the ground, the initial finding was a high positivity rate for malaria among those tested at a private clinic and Pakaan PHCC

“It is worth noting that this time of the year, malaria is expected to surge and if not promptly treated, it may lead to excess deaths, ultimately, the ministry of health would like to reassure the public that the reported illness is an upsurge of malaria due to flooding situation and all measures are being taken to improved health services delivery in Fangak,” he stressed.

Early this week, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that at least 89 people have died from an unknown illness in South Sudan since late November.

The deaths occurred in Fangak County, Jonglei State, in the north of the country.

The WHO has deployed a rapid response task force to help local health officials identify the disease.

Sheila Baya from the WHO stated that the WHO task force was sent to conduct a risk assessment and help collect samples to identify the disease.

The region has suffered severe flooding, which has led to contamination of water, food shortages, and the death of domestic animals. The flooding has added to transportation difficulties for health workers, and the WHO team has had to fly in and out by helicopter from the capital, Juba.