The Minister of Information in Fangak says a mysterious disease has killed dozens of people and livestock in the area since the beginning of the month.

James Lony says cases of the disease are being reported in Akheer, near the state capital Ayod. He said the disease kills within a few minutes.

“The disease is killing people on spot and also it is killing animals. This kind of the disease is just killing you within some few minutes,” said Lony.

Mr. Lony added that the disease carries symptoms similar to cholera.

“But with cholera sometimes it kills you after some hours, when it drain your water away until your body become dry, but people were looking at the symptoms of how cholera spreads but we also failed to understand that the symptoms are the symptoms of cholera,” he said.

Mr Lony said the number of both human beings and livestock killed by the disease has not been established.

He told Eye Radio that the disease could be a result of an oil exploration in the area, where two oil companies drilled wells in Akheer village near the River Nile in 2006.

The Fangak state official calls for external help to identify the disease and treat those affected.