Touring areas in Tripoli, Akkar, Bekka and Baalbek-Hermel, the head of the sector confirmed that lack of access to clean water sources and their unreliable use in agriculture lead to cholera infections.
Health facility officials confirmed the contamination of water in the Tabbaneh area of north Tripoli after testing samples from public sources.
At the same time, Beirut and Mount Lebanon Water Corporation director-general Jean Gibran revealed that many of the supply wells are polluted and pose a health risk if ingested, containing germs above permitted levels.
In this sense, the results of the tests carried out by the municipality of Ghobeiry in this capital, on samples from the tanks distributed to households, showed the presence of germs caused by the mixing of the precious liquid with sewage.
Faced with this scenario, health officials urged the Lebanese to sterilize the tanks, examine the hydraulic networks to find out which ones are contaminated and shut them down.
They also recommended a number of hygiene measures, such as For example, always drinking potable water, washing hands thoroughly, maintaining good cleanliness in bathrooms and kitchens, cleaning surfaces on which food is prepared, and consuming well-cooked various products.
According to the World Health Organization, cholera is an acute bacterial infection that affects the stomach and is transmitted through contaminated hands, water or food.
In its first cases since 1993, Lebanon has recorded 239 cholera patients and 10 deaths, with the epidemic occurring in 36 locations in the northern regions of Akkar, Minieh Dannieh and Tripoli; in the northeast of the Bekka; to the east of Baalbek; in South Saida and in Mount Lebanon Governorate.
ymr/yma