Category: Health

Fire burns Ikowoto health facility into ashes

A fire outbreak has burnt a Primary Health Unit in Imatong Payam, Ikowoto County of Eastern Equatoria State into ashes over the weekend, a health official has said.

Ikwoto County Health Director Lope Joseph told Eye Radio this morning that the Incident occurred on Sunday at around 2:30PM.

This was after an old man set fire to a nearby garden which escalated to the health facility amid a windy Sunday afternoon, leading to the inferno.

“It (the fire) was at the Naloma PHC in Imatong Payam on 18th this month. In term of human beings there were no casualties but the whole facility was burned into ashes.

Lope said there were eight health workers at the health facility at time of the fire outbreak.

According to him, there were no casualties recorded and few medical and nutrition supplies rescued from the health facility.

“There were some few items that has been rescued, some nutritional supplies and few drugs but majority of the drugs got burned.”

‘The incident according to our Investigation yesterday (Sunday), we found out that there was an old man who was burning his garden.

“After setting the fire in the garden the fire escalated and with the wind and because it was hot, then the wind immediately pushed the fire on top of the building and because the facility is a grass house so immediately it burned.”

Lope said the community resolved that a room of one of the primary schools in the area is converted into a temporary health facility until the burned facility is rehabilitated in the next two-month time.

“We sat with the community yesterday (Monday] and we have agreed that a store in one of the primary schools will be used temporarily, and after two months they will rehabilitate what is already burned.

“Currently they are still doing the cleanliness to the building and maybe on Monday we shall resume services in Naloma PHC,” he added.

According to Health Authorities, there were Six Primary Health Care Units inclduing the burnt one in Imatong Payam

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ministry of Health, partners roll out yellow fever vaccine in WES

The Ministry of Health in collaboration with aid agencies has initiated a reactive Yellow Fever vaccination campaign as part of preventive response to the disease outbreak in Western Equatoria State in December 2023.

In a statement on Tuesday, WHO said as of 3 February 2024, 48 suspected and two confirmed Yellow Fever cases were reported from Yambio, Nzara, Tambura, Ibba, Ezo, and Maridi Counties of Western Equatoria State.

“To address the outbreak, a multidisciplinary team of epidemiologists, public health officers, entomologists, laboratory specialists, and risk communication experts conducted an extensive epidemiological investigation to characterize the extent of the outbreak, identify risk/exposure factors and implement control and prevention measures,” Dr Yolanda Awel, the National Health Minister has said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Dr Humphrey Karamagi, WHO Representative for South Sudan says: “This reactive measure aims to protect populations at high risk and act as a bridge towards integrating the yellow fever vaccine into routine immunization systems.”

According to WHO, Yellow fever, an acute viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes, poses a significant public health threat.

Its symptoms include fever, headache, jaundice, muscle pain, nausea, vomiting, and fatigue, and can lead to severe complications with patients succumbing within 7 to 10 days.

 

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