10-15 Mariupol residents present with cholera symptoms daily but are sent home – Advisor to Mariupol mayor

DIANA KRECHETOVA – FRIDAY, 17 JUNE 2022

In the city of Mariupol, temporarily occupied by Russia, between 10 and 15 people present with symptoms of cholera and dysentery every day, complaining of diarrhoea, vomiting, and headaches.

Source: Petro Andriushchenko, advisor to the mayor of Mariupol, on Telegram

Details: According to Andriushchenko’s sources from among the Russian collaborators, Mariupol hospitals currently have neither reagents for testing people nor antibiotics to treat them because Russian occupying forces have taken everything away. Instead of receiving medical attention and treatment, people are dismissed and simply sent home.

In addition, Russian occupiers have limited the extent of their interactions with the residents of Mariupol in the city’s hospitals.

"As of the day before yesterday, Russian military personnel hospitalised in Hospital No.2 have stopped eating their meals in the hospital canteen. Now they are completely separate," Andriushchenko said.

According to the advisor to the mayor, occupation authorities in Mariupol are not taking any measures to reduce the risk of the spread of infectious diseases. Meanwhile, an International Committee of the Red Cross convoy has been spotted in Mariupol.

"Yesterday an International Red Cross convoy – four trucks with humanitarian aid – was spotted on the Left Bank. We hope that the ICRC will be able to intervene in the situation. The occupiers have done nothing, they haven’t even banned the sales of live fish, which is one of the greatest vectors of disease," Andriushchenko stressed.

He added that serious infectious diseases are not the only source of concern for the residents of Russian-occupied Mariupol. According to his data, people suffering from diabetes do not have access to a sufficient supply of insulin; the insulin they do have access to is of poor quality.

"Sources report that the number of limb amputations among people with diabetes has risen sharply in the past week, with at least two amputations taking place daily," Andriushchenko said.

In addition, the lack of drinking water has not been addressed, either. Queues for the available supply have been steadily rising. Earlier, Andriushchenko reported that Mariupol residents have to sign up for a place in the queue for drinking water at least two days in advance.

"The main source of water are the streams that run down the streets. Sources report that in reality, water pressure is four times lower than the minimum standard. If all parts of the city are reconnected to the central water supply, whatever water there is will de facto disappear even from those places where it can be found now (even without taking into account interruptions to the water supply)," the advisor to the mayor underscored.

On 11 June, Andriushchenko said that Russian occupation authorities publicly deny the threat of a cholera outbreak in Mariupol, even while medical establishments are beginning to prepare for an epidemic.

In addition, Ihor Kuzin, Deputy Minister of Health and Chief State Sanitary doctor of Ukraine, said that the war can cause an outbreak of cholera, especially in the cities where active hostilities are taking place.