Pakistan floods: Outbreak of waterborne diseases raises concern

The outbreak of waterborne diseases in areas hit by recent record-breaking floods in Pakistan has raised concern among health officials, as nearly half a million people are living in relief camps, local media reported.

According to a report released by the Sindh health department, diarrhoea, skin diseases and eye infections are spreading at relief camps set up by the government across the province, local media reported.

Pakistan has faced unprecedented floods this year, affecting nearly 33 million people and leaving tens of thousands displaced.

Due to internal displacement, more than 500,000 people are currently living in relief camps across Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and Punjab.

According to a report released by the health officials on Saturday, more than 134,000 diarrhoea cases were reported from Sindh in the past two months.

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"Major health concerns already reported the spread of diarrheal diseases skin and eye infections acute respiratory infections malaria Crops and livestock have been lost posing a serious threat to the nutrition of afflicted communities," WHO Pakistan tweeted on Friday.

As heavy monsoon rains and floods continue to create havoc in the country, early 1,300 people have lost their lives in different provinces of the country.

The death toll since June has reached 1,290 with 29 people dying in the last 24 hours, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Saturday, reported Geo News.

Large parts of the country remain submerged - particularly the provinces of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh in the south. At least 180 people have died in Sindh followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (138) and Balochistan (125), reported Geo News.

The southern province of Sindh, which has been badly hit by the flooding, has asked for 1 million tents, while nearby Balochistan province has requested 100,000 tents. Since mid-June, when the monsoon began, more than 3,000 kilometres (1,864 miles) of road, 130 bridges and 495,000 homes have been damaged, according to NDMA's last situation report.

At least, 1,468,019 houses have been partially or totally damaged, while 736,459 livestock have been killed due to the floods.

The floods that have inundated a third of the country -- affecting more than 33 million people -- were preceded by four heatwaves and multiple raging forest fires, the disaster management chief told the high-level meeting, highlighting the effects of climate change in the South Asian nation.

• Pakistan