Island epidemic hits 50 000
2006-02-02 14:06
Paris - About 50 000 people on France's Indian Ocean island of Reunion have been hit by an epidemic of a crippling mosquito-borne disease that has no known cure, health authorities said on Thursday.
Doctors have recorded 45 000 new cases of "chikungunya" since mid-December, when the epidemic started to gather pace, Philippe Renault, a specialist with a regional epidemiologal cell, told a press conference.
The previous toll, given last Friday, had stood at 30 000.
Chikungunya is Swahili for "that which bends up" and refers to the stooped posture of those afflicted by the non-fatal but extremely painful disease for which there is no known vaccine or cure.
It is characterised by high fever and severe rashes, and while non-fatal in itself and most people eventually recover, it can provide opportunities for other diseases to set in.
France last week drafted 400 extra troops to help fight the mosquitoes that have been spreading the disease across Reunion since March last year.
The volcanic island east of Madagascar, a French overseas department with a population of 760 000, has earmarked €600 000 to fight the outbreak.
Authorities in Madagascar also fear the disease may have reached their island.
- AFP