Viva Rio to help against Cholera

Viva Rio is working to contain a cholera epidemic, which in two days, killed at least 135 people and has hospitalized at least 1,500 in central Haiti.

Officials in Haiti are concerned that the outbreak will reach Port-au-Prince, where nearly 1.5 million people are still living in tent camps since the January earthquake. A lack of basic hygiene services has made the region vulnerable to the spread of disease.

At the request of Haiti's Health Minister, Viva Rio's Haitian headquarters, Kay Nou (Our Home, in Creole), will be converted into an information center on during the cholera epidemic.

"Since we already have a field clinic, run by a team of Haitian doctors, the Health Ministry contacted us and asked us to [convert Kay Nou] into a an information center on treatment, prevention, and education," said Viva Rio's executive director, Rubem César Fernades, who is currently in Haiti.

According to Rubem Cesar Fernandes, the cholera epidemic has reached Port-au-Prince, with cases reported in Kay Nou and in schools where Viva Rio operates. He added that a lack of sanitation infrastructure is a very serious problem in the country.

"There are still more than a million people living in tent camps, due to the earthquake. In the settlements, the issue of hygiene is complicated. People use the open-air latrines, which become centers for contamination because they are difficult to sanitize. Many of these spaces don't have hand-washing facilities, which also spreads disease," he added.

Donations

If you would like to make a donation to help with the anti-cholera activities carried out by Viva Rio, you can make a deposit to the following account:

Bank: Banco do Brasil
C/C: 100065090
ABA: 026003557
SWIFT: BRASUS33

Translated by Danielle Renwick

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