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PESTILENCE WATCH:Death toll hits 12 as cholera spreads in Iraq

BAGHDAD,Iraq-A 40-year-old woman who lived in the southern Baghdad outskirts has died of cholera, the 12th death in Iraq from a recent outbreak of the disease, an Iraqi Health Ministry spokesman said Thursday. This death comes amid growing concern in war-torn Iraq about the deteriorating infrastructure, and cholera is prevalent in areas where the water quality is poor.The World Health Organization, which issued an update Tuesday on cholera, blames the outbreak on poor water quality and sewage treatment and cited a shortage of chlorine, which the agency said is "urgently needed" for water treatment. Cholera is a bacterial ailment that affects the intestinal tract and is usually contracted by consuming contaminated water. Victims are stricken with a sudden onset of acute watery diarrhea, which can cause death by severe dehydration and kidney failure.An outbreak of cholera was first reported in northern Iraq last month and has been spreading to other parts of the country, according to the WHO, which issued an update about the problem on Tuesday.The WHO said that 2,116 cases of cholera have been confirmed across the country, and that more than 30,000 people have been sickened by acute watery diarrhea. Sixty-eight percent of the lab-confirmed cases have been reported in Tameem province, where Kirkuk is located and where the ailment was first detected. It spread to the Iraqi Kurdish provinces of Sulaimaniya and Irbil, the organization said.As of Tuesday, six cases were confirmed in Tikrit, two in Mosul, and one in Duhuk, all in the north; one in Baghdad; and one in Basra in the southeast, the WHO said.The WHO said that the "case fatality rate is 0.52 percent and has remained low throughout the outbreak. The Health Ministry said that along with the Baghdad death, nine have been reported in Sulaimaniya, one in Kirkuk and one in Nineveh province.The agency said it "does not recommend any special restrictions to travel or trade to or from affected areas" in controlling the spread of the ailment.Iraq is implementing preventive measures "to reduce the risk of transmission to unaffected areas." But it cites "a severe shortage of chlorination products" and the urgent need for proper water treatment."Provision of safe water is the highest priority in controlling an outbreak of cholera," according to the WHO.The Baghdad woman, Majda Ameen, died on Monday in a hospital, where she was admitted seven days before her death. Her son was diagnosed with cholera as well, the ministry said.

As in the days of Noah...