Sep 29 2011
"Philippines authorities are warning of possible water-borne disease outbreaks following Typhoon Nesat," which ripped through the country on Tuesday causing widespread damage including power outages, flooding and landslides, IRIN reports (9/28). According to Reuters, at least 21 people have been killed by the storm and its consequences (Mogato, 9/28).
Health officials have warned that people, especially children, in affected areas are at risk of common cold, diarrhea, and the bacterial infection Leptospirosis, IRIN notes. "Philippine National Red Cross Secretary-General Gwen Pang said health volunteers had fanned out to promote sanitation education as well as help affected medical institutions cope with the disaster," the news service writes (9/28).
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 This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
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