Benue State is currently grappling with an outbreak of Lassa fever, which has resulted in the loss of nine lives over the past two months.
Dr. Sam Ngishe, the state epidemiologist, disclosed this information to the press on Thursday, mentioning that some of the deceased individuals were living in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps.
“From our report so far, the IDP camp has a high population of rats. So, if the rats transmitting are within the IDP camps, it means that we need to work hard so we don’t have an outbreak that will be difficult to control,” the epidemiologist said.
He stated that 46 people, including health workers and IDPs, have been affected by the disease across the state.
Ngishe stated that four cases were identified among displaced persons at the Ortese IDP camp in the Guma Local Government Area and that the disease had spread to seven of the 23 local government areas of the state, including Obi, Okpokwu, Gwer West, Makurdi, Guma, Gwer East, and Ukum.
He said, “Nine deaths in confirmed cases and they have been buried in accordance with safe burial protocols across the various areas of the state where they hail from.”
The state government has implemented safe burial protocols for the deceased and is working to reduce the fatality rate of the outbreak, which is currently above the national average of 10 per cent.
The epidemiologist stressed the importance of enhanced surveillance, risk communication, and community engagement to mitigate the spread of the disease. Additionally, Ngishe pointed out the challenges posed by the IDP camp environment, including poor sanitation, overcrowding, and malnutrition, which contribute to the spread of infectious diseases.
“There is active surveillance going on in the community (housing Ortese IDP camp) as you know that the IDP camp is a cluster setting with very poor infection control in terms of poor sanitation, crowded environment and they have issues of malnutrition,” he noted.
