SUKKUR: As many as seven children died of malaria in a single day (Sunday) while several hundred such patients were suffering from the disease in Jacobabad district, health workers and residents of different villages hit by the outbreak told the media.

The malaria patients who died on Sunday were identified as Aqsa Sarki, 5 (Muno Sarki village), Saima, 12 (Dost Mohammad Bhangar village), Kamran, 2 and Ali Hassan, 3 (Manik Jamali village), Rashid Ali, 6 (Ghumman Ghunio village), Hidayatullah Khoso, 8 (Azizababad) and Latif Mirani, 7 (Dau Jahanpur).

Residents of the villages said dozens of people, mainly children, had died of malaria, gastroenteritis and other diseases since the recent rains and flooding in the district but proper treatment and preventive efforts were not being made owing to a lack of adequate healthcare services.

They urged the health department to pay immediate attention to the outbreaks to save lives of hundreds of more patients.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2022