Vijayawada in fear grip after 26 fall prey to diarrhoea in two days

Residents in Moghalrajpuram experience diarrhoea outbreak, suspecting water contamination; officials investigate and provide free medical treatment.

“The situation has reminded us of the pandemic days,” says Subbalakshmi, a resident of Moghalrajpuram here, where at least 26 people are reported to have suffered from diarrhoea and vomiting, and at least one person is suspected to have died with the symptoms.

Subbalakshmi’s aunt, Varalakshmi, is one of the four persons admitted to the hospital after she suffered a bout of diarrhoea and vomiting. Her condition is stable now. At Noble Hospital, located nearby, authorities said they have admitted 13 patients from May 21. All of them recovered, they said.

“My aunt, aged 65, started experiencing the symptoms on Saturday, leading to a drop in her blood pressure level. She took medicines for the treatment of diarrhoea, but when there was no improvement in her condition, she was taken to the hospital where she was administered electrolytes,” Ms. Subbalakshmi says, adding that they always drank municipal water. Only recently, after they noticed too much of dirt in water, that her family started buying mineral water.

“Most of the people living here are dependent on water supplied by the municipal corporation because we cannot afford to spend ₹1,500 per month on mineral water,” said C. Srinivasa Rao, a relative of Valluru Durga Rao, who is suspected to have died after developing the symptoms. Mr. Durga Rao developed symptoms on Saturday morning and died while being taken to the Government General Hospital late at night on Sunday.

However, health officials have maintained that Mr. Durga Rao also had a history of paralysis and epilepsy and that it is too early to say what led to his death. While officials say there has been one suspected death so far, residents say the number could be more than that.

Symptoms for all the affected members in their families started around the same time, that is around May 21, residents said. “The water was always murky. But health problems started only recently. Now, we have begun using borewell water instead of municipal water,” another resident, Madhu, a photographer and a neighbour of Mr. Durga Rao, said.

In his family, he and his two children, a 3-year-old and a 6-month-old, are suffering from diarrhoea. He said those who do not have borewells are boiling municipal water before drinking.