Kabkabiya, April 13 (Darfur24)
At least 23 children have died, and more than 200 others have been infected as measles and whooping cough spread rapidly in Kabkabiya, west of El Fasher in North Darfur, amid a deepening health crisis and acute shortages of vaccines and medicines.
The emergency room in the area said in a statement on Monday that 222 measles cases and 196 cases of whooping cough have been recorded, warning of a sharp escalation in infections within a short period.
According to the statement, initial field data showed 21 deaths and 215 measles infections, but the toll rose within 24 hours to 23 deaths and 222 infections, reflecting what it described as a “critical health situation” threatening children’s lives.
The chamber attributed the rapid spread of the diseases to deteriorating humanitarian conditions, weak health services, and the near absence of routine vaccination.
It called on humanitarian organizations, United Nations agencies, and health authorities to urgently intervene by supplying vaccines and medicines, supporting health facilities with medical staff and essential supplies, and launching emergency vaccination campaigns.
Medical workers say the true scale of the outbreak is likely far higher. A health staff member in the city told Darfur24 that recorded cases are limited to urban neighborhoods, while many infections in surrounding areas remain undocumented.
He added that insecurity and economic hardship are preventing families from reaching health centers, noting that children are “dying silently” in remote areas without access to care. He estimated that reported figures may represent only about half of actual cases due to the lack of diagnostic tools and medical supplies.
The outbreak in Kabkabiya comes amid a wider spread of measles across Darfur and Kordofan, with recent cases reported in Labado in East Darfur, and Kalmando and Shangil Tobaya in North Darfur, raising fears of a growing regional health emergency.