The worst cholera epidemic ever recorded in Zimbabwe is still not under control after infecting nearly 24,000 people, Xinhua quoted the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) as reporting. The disease now has spread to all provinces in the southern African country and caused some 1,200 deaths. Staffing issue at cholera treatment centers in the country is serious as many medics are not paid with salaries therefore do not go to work, UNICEF Country Representative Roeland Monasch said in Harare, the country's capital. Half the cholera cases are reported in Harare, and only a handful of professionals are staffing clinics where dozens more are needed. UNICEF is providing the country with 700,000 liters of clean water a day, even digging boreholes in urban areas. It is also distributing 4,000 tons of water treatment chemicals for urban areas to fight the disease. Cholera is caused by contaminated food or water and can lead quickly to severe dehydration and death if treatment is not promptly given.
