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The Cholera Epidemic Of 1832

The Cholera Epidemic of 1832 In June 1832, two events stirred up political conflict in Lower Canada: the Place d'Armes by-election, which turned into a tragedy costing several lives, and the cholera epidemic.

At the beginning of June, the Carrick, a ship that had come over from Ireland, reached Quebec with a few feverish immigrants on board.

Three days later, cholera took its first victim.

The illness spread like wildfire all the way to Montreal and then to Upper Canada. It quickly became an epidemic that moved through the shanty neighbourhoods of the urban poor, which were breeding grounds for contagion. The lack of sewers and garbage collection contributed to water contamination. Soon the epidemic was out of control and hundreds died each day, mostly in the large towns.

On June 14, 1832, La Minerve newspaper verified the spread of cholera.

"14 June, 1832: Since Monday morning Montreal is in turmoil and the alarm is growing every minute. There is no longer doubt that cholera is present. We recommend that the public observe strictly the Regulations of the Board of Health."

La Minerve tried to prevent panic from spreading, advising that:

"There is no use in becoming alarmed.When the illness appears, one must see a doctor and follow his instructions. The apothecaries have the necessary remedies in stock and their prices are affordable to all pocketbooks."

In reality, doctors were overwhelmed and powerless. They thought cholera was transmitted by fumes carried through the atmosphere. To purify the air, English officers tried firing off cannons and the Sanitary Office burned tar.

Alexander Hart, a Jewish merchant from Montreal, saw death all around him:

"None of us go into town anymore.Many are moving into the country. Yesterday 34 corpses passed our house. Today, 23... Not counting those in the old burial Ground and in the Catholic ground. 12 carts are employed by the Board of Health to carry away the dead who are interred without prayers."

By the end of 1832, the epidemic had claimed 9,000 lives, more than half of them in Lower Canada. Some Canadians held England responsible for this misfortune, citing its emigration policy for negligence, if not malevolence.

In a letter to his cousin, Jean-Jacques Lartigue, the Bishop of Montreal, spoke of the Place d'Armes by-election and the cholera epidemic:

"The other subjects that seem to me most worthy of your attention at the present time are: the murder of our "Canadiens" on May 21st, which the governor has since officially condoned; and the invasion of our uncultivated land by British immigrants who threaten to drive us out of our country and reduce our "Canadien" population, year after year, by the spread of disease."

This climate of death, fear and loathing helped kindle a political firestorm in Lower Canada.

Cholera Confirmed In Lebanon, Risk Of Spread 'Very High': WHO

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The risk of cholera spreading in Lebanon is "very high", the World Health Organization warned Wednesday, after a case of the acute and potentially deadly diarrhoeal infection was detected in the conflict-hit country.

The WHO highlighted the risk of cholera spreading among hundreds of thousands of people displaced since Israel escalated an air campaign against Hezbollah and launched a ground offensive intended to push the group back from its northern border with Lebanon.

"If the cholera outbreak … spreads to the new displaced people, it might spread very fast," Abdinasir Abubakar, WHO's representative in Lebanon, told reporters in an online news conference.

Lebanon's health ministry said a cholera case had been confirmed in a Lebanese national who went to hospital on Monday suffering from watery diarrhoea and dehydration.

The patient, from Ammouniyeh in northern Lebanon, had no history of travel, the ministry said.

Lebanon suffered its first cholera outbreak in 30 years between 2022 and 2023, mainly in the north of the country.

The disease, which causes severe diarrhoea, vomiting and muscle cramps, generally arises from eating or drinking food or water that is contaminated with the bacterium, according to the WHO.

The UN health agency has for months been warning that the disease could resurface amid "deteriorating water and sanitation" among the displaced and their host communities, Abubakar said.

The number of displaced swelled even before the escalation last month, as Hezbollah exchanged cross-border fire with Israel over the past year, saying it was acting over Israel's war on Gaza.

While people in northern Lebanon had recently been exposed or vaccinated, Abubakar cautioned that some communities on the move from southern Lebanon and the Beirut area had not built up any cholera immunity for three decades.

If the disease gets into those populations, he warned, "the risk of spread is very high".

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters the agency had strengthened "surveillance and conduct tracing, including environmental surveillance and water sampling".

In August, he said, the Lebanese health ministry launched an oral cholera vaccination campaign targeting 350,000 people living in high-risk areas, but the campaign was "interrupted by the escalation in violence".

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The Barron's news department was not involved in the creation of the content above. This article was produced by AFP. For more information go to AFP.Com.© Agence France-Presse

Cholera Outbreak Surged By 220% In 2024-NCDC

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control has stated that the cholera outbreak in Nigeria has seen a sharp increase in 2024, with suspected cases rising by an alarming 220 per cent.

The NCDC, on its official website, said that this was according to the latest epidemiological report.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that Cholera is an acute intestinal infection spread through contaminated food and water. Communities with limited access to sanitation are most affected.

Conflict, climate change, inadequate safe water and sanitation, poverty, underdevelopment, and population displacement due to emerging and re-emerging conflicts and disasters from natural hazards all contribute to the rise in cholera outbreaks.

The Nigerian Public Health Agency said that by the end of epidemiological week 39, the country had recorded 10,837 suspected cases and 359 deaths.

It said that the figure represented 239 per cent increase in fatalities compared to 2023.

It said that the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) for the year stood at 3.3 per cent, slightly higher than the 3.1 per cent recorded in the previous year.

"In the past week alone, 198 new suspected cases were reported across five states, leading to 15 deaths and a weekly CFR of 7.6 per cent.

"The states most affected by the outbreak during week 39 include Adamawa (131 cases), Ebonyi (30 cases), Borno (29 cases), Kano (7 cases), and Jigawa (1 case)."Adamawa continues to be a hotspot, with 535 suspected cases reported in the past month," it said.

The agency said that since the beginning of 2024, Lagos state had reported the highest number of suspected cholera cases, contributing 43 per cent of the national total.

It said that Lagos Island Local Government accounted for five per cent of the country's overall cases.

"Lagos Island LGA is particularly hard-hit, contributing five per cent of all suspected cases nationwide.

"Stool cultures have been employed to monitor the situation, with 254 Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) conducted, yielding 175 positive results, and 149 stool cultures, of which 103 tested positive," it said.

It said that other states, including Jigawa, Kano, Borno, and Katsina, had also reported significant case numbers, highlighting the widespread nature of the outbreak.

"Jigawa recorded 870 cases, Kano recorded cases, and Borno recorded588 cases," it said.

The NCDC disclosed that children under five years old were most affected, followed by those aged between five and 14.

It said that the male population represented 52 per cent of the total suspected cases, with females making up 48 per cent.

The NCDC report underscores the need for continued vigilance and response efforts, as the outbreak shows no signs of slowing.

The Agency has activated a national multi-sectoral Cholera Technical Working Group to monitor and respond to outbreaks across states.

It stressed the importance of improving sanitation, access to clean water, and public health education to curb the spread of the disease.

"Efforts are ongoing to strengthen health systems and enhance surveillance in high-risk areas," it said.

The agency urged the public to report suspected cholera cases and adhere to preventive measures, including proper hand washing and safe food handling, to reduce transmission.

Meanwhile, according to the NCDC, in communities affected by the outbreak of the infectious disease, open defecation is a common practice.

It said that the practice continued to pose a challenge to the country's effort at curbing the spread of cholera.

The agency also highlighted the poor access to potable water, sanitation and WASH supplies.

It said that lack of drinking water in some rural areas and urban slums; water shortage leading to reliance on people selling water in Jerry cans were also responsible for the spread.

"There is also inadequate WASH infrastructure and supplies including wastewater management facilities," it saidThe NCDC also said that the shortage of skilled personnel in states impeded efforts to ensure effective case management.

As part of the challenges affecting the effort to curb the spread, the agency highlighted the absence of Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) materials at the community level.

It also cited the poor access to consumables and supplies for case management.

"No IEC materials at the community level, inadequate consumables and supplies for case management, inadequate logistics for active case search, thus insufficient active case search in the communities," the report reads.

NAN recalls that with cholera cases already far exceeding last year's numbers, there is a growing concern that the outbreak could worsen if immediate action was not taken.

Public health experts are calling for enhanced intervention strategies and continuous community engagement to combat this deadly disease.

For more information and updates on the cholera situation, the public is encouraged to visit the NCDC website or contact the toll-free helpline.

Meanwhile, cholera outbreaks in the Middle East, South Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa are spreading globally and becoming more deadly.

According to a new analysis by the World Health Organisation, deaths from diarrheal disease soared last year, far outpacing the rise in cases.

Although cholera is easy to prevent and costs little to treat, large outbreaks have overwhelmed even well-prepared health systems in countries that had not faced the disease in years.

Globally, the number of cholera deaths reported last year increased by 71 per cent compared to 2022, while reported cases rose by 13 per cent.

The WHO report attributed much of the increase to conflict and climate change

(NAN)

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