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Agence France-Presse

Hundreds of thousands of displaced people who fled Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo after a volcanic eruption are at risk of infection by cholera, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) warned on Sunday.
After the Nyiragongo volcano rumbled to life a week ago, fears of a second eruption spurred the government to issue an evacuation order on Thursday that sent 400,000 residents fleeing.
As many as a quarter of them headed to Sake, about 30 kilometres (18 miles) to the northwest, while others made for Rutshuru in the north, and Minova in South-Kivu province.

“Obviously we fear a flare up of cholera. The risk is already elevated in this area where cholera is already endemic,” Magali Roudaut, head of MSF’s Goma-based mission in the DR Congo said.
“With these populations on the move it would be catastrophic,” she warned.
In Sake, where MSF has been fighting a cholera presence for years, Roudaut said between 100,000 and 180,000 people had taken refuge adding to the area’s 70,000 population
“You can imagine the difficulty of absorbing that influx,” she said.
“The biggest problem is access to water – having enough drinkable water for these people is essential,” she said.
At least 15 dead after Mount Nyiragongo volcano erupts in Democratic Republic of Congo
Many of the displaced are staying churches, temples, mosques and community centres.
“Many people are still sleeping outside even if the people of Sake have been very welcoming,” she added.
Roudaut said MSF deployed a team to address the water shortage, bringing in supplies and distributing water by tanker truck.
But she said more required and cited food, shelter and medicine as other major needs.
“This crisis demands assistance and an immediate intervention,” she said.


International aid organisations are already heavily present in Goma, which is the capital of North-Kivu province, an area wracked by three decades of violence by scores of armed groups, many of them a legacy of two regional wars that ran from 1996 to 2003.
The UN humanitarian agency OCHA said after the eruption that more than 4,500 homes were destroyed by lava, affecting some 20,000 people.
The United Nations Stabilisation mission in the DR Congo (MONUSCO) has started aerial monitoring of the volcano.
Adding to the trials of the displaced, hundreds of children were separated from their parents in the exodus – a situation humanitarian organisations are hurrying to address.


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Africa

Citizens displaced by Democratic Republic of Congo volcano eruption now face cholera risk

Internally displaced Congolese collect water outside a church in Sake town, near Goma, in Democratic Republic of Congo. Photo: Reuters

A photo taken on May 30, 2021 shows the active Nyamuragira volcano, close to the Nyiragongo volcano, north of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu. - The Nyiragongo, Africa's most active volcano, located in the Virunga National Park, erupted on May 22, 2021, killing 32 people and sweeping away the electricity facilities. The possibility of a second eruption in the coming days is not ruled out by scientists on the ground. (Photo by ALEXIS HUGUET / AFP)

At least 15 dead after Mount Nyiragongo volcano erupts in Democratic Republic of Congo

Congolese residents of Goma arrive in Rwanda on Sunday after fleeing from the Mount Nyiragongo volcano after it erupted on Saturday. Photo: EPA-EFE

(210523) -- GOMA, May 23, 2021 (Xinhua) -- Photo taken on May 22, 2021 shows the night sky of Goma city, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Nyiragongo volcano, located not far from the DR Congo's border with Rwanda, started to erupt on Saturday. Right after the volcano burst into activity at around 7 p.m. local time on Saturday, the night sky of Goma, with a population of nearly 2 million, was illuminated with orange flames. The electricity supply across much of city was cut off. (Str/Xinhua)

epa09223123 Refugee Congolese residents of Goma sit in a stadium in Rwanda after fleeing from Mount Nyiragongo volcano as it erupted over Goma, Rubavu District, Rwanda, 23 May 2021. One of the planets most active volcanoes Mount Nyiragongo in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo erupted 22 May causing evacuations in some parts of Goma. EPA-EFE/EUGENE UWIMANA

TOPSHOT - Children play with lava from Mount Nyiragongo on May 23, 2021 in Goma. - A river of boiling lava came to a halt on the outskirts of Goma Sunday, sparing the city in eastern DR Congo from disaster after the nighttime eruption of Mount Nyiragongo sent thousands of terrified residents fleeing in panic. Fire and strong fumes emanated from the blackish molten rock as it swallowed up houses, heading towards Goma airport on the shores of Lake Kivu. (Photo by Moses Sawasawa / AFP)

Thousands flee Goma in DRC after Nyiragongo volcano erupts, sparking panic

Mount Nyiragongo in Democratic Republic of Congo erupts on Saturday. Photo: AP

epa09221145 Congolese residents of Goma flee from Mount Nyiragongo volcano as it erupts over Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 22 May 2021. One of the planets most active volcanoes Mount Nyiragongo in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo erupted causing evacuations in some parts of Goma. Initial reports from scientists predict the city is not in danger from the lava. EPA-EFE/HUGH KINSELLA CUNNINGHAM

epa09220971 Mount Nyiragongo volcano erupts over Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 22 May 2021. One of the planets most active volcanoes Mount Nyiragongo in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo erupted causing evacuations in some parts of Goma. Initial reports from scientists predict the city is not in danger from the lava. EPA-EFE/HUGH KINSELLA CUNNINGHAM

Iceland volcano dormant for 900 years erupts, lights up night sky near capital Reykjavik

Lava flows from the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano near the Icelandic capital Reykjavik on Friday. Photo: Icelandic Coast Guard/AFP

The night sky glows following the eruption of a volcano on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula not far from the capital Reykjavik, late Friday March 19, 2021. The long dormant volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland flared to life Friday night, spilling lava down two sides in that area's first volcanic eruption in nearly 800 years. (Hildur Hlín Jónsdóttir via AP)

The red shimmer from magma flowing out from the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano behind the landmark Blue Lagoon, some 45 km west of the Icelandic capital Reykjavik, on March 19, 2021. - A volcano erupted in Iceland on Friday some 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the capital Reykjavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said, as a red cloud lit up the night sky and a no-fly zone was established in the area. (Photo by Halldor KOLBEINS / AFP)

HANDOUT - 20 March 2021, Iceland, Reykjanes Peninsula: An aerial from a coast guard helicopter shows the eruption at Fagradalsfjall volcano near the Icelandic capital Reykjavik. The Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management urged residents to stay calm and warned against approaching the volcano. Photo: -/Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management in Iceland/dpa - ATTENTION: editorial use only and only if the credit mentioned above is referenced in full

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World


Fears of a second eruption spurred the government to issue an evacuation order on Thursday that sent 400,000 residents fleeing
‘The biggest problem is access to water – having enough drinkable water for these people is essential,’ said a spokesman for Medecins Sans Frontieres



Fears of a second eruption spurred the government to issue an evacuation order on Thursday that sent 400,000 residents fleeing.


Volcanoes

Disease

Ebola virus

Citizens displaced by Democratic Republic of Congo volcano eruption now face cholera risk

Fears of a second eruption spurred the government to issue an evacuation order on Thursday that sent 400,000 residents fleeing ‘The biggest problem is access to water – having enough drinkable water for these people is essential,’ said a spokesman for Medecins Sans Frontieres

Fears of a second eruption spurred the government to issue an evacuation order on Thursday that sent 400,000 residents fleeing

‘The biggest problem is access to water – having enough drinkable water for these people is essential,’ said a spokesman for Medecins Sans Frontieres