A cholera outbreak has claimed more than one hundred lives at an illegal gold and diamond mine in southeast Liberia, it emerged Thursday, according to DPA. Radio Veritas reported that the outbreak in the town of Butaw in Sinoe County, which started last week, was the result of poor sanitation. A resident of the area, recently arrived in Monrovia, told Radio Veritas late Wednesday evening that a creek used for drinking water was contaminated by raw sewage. Information Minister William Allen confirmed the outbreak, and the health ministry has dispatched a team to the area. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) said on UNMIL radio Wednesday evening the situation has been brought under control. Thousands of illegal miners, including many Ghanaians, Nigerians and Mauritanians, are said to be operating illegally in Sinoe County in an area of protected forest, according to the information ministry.
