In October 2010, cholera, first appeared in Haiti and rapidly spread through a vulnerable population that had not been exposed to the pathogen in over a century. Thus far, there has been 420,000 infections, 6,000 deaths. In July 2011, one person was infected with cholera almost every minute, and at least 375 died. Poor & unequal access to potable water and sanitation is the primary culprit for the rapid spread of cholera. International Action's chlorinators can provide clean water and save lives
Medical researchers have stated that the cholera epidemic in Haiti is much bigger and likely to be much longer lasting than initially expected. According to a study conducted by American researchers published in the medical journal, The Lancet, there could be nearly 800,000 cholera infections and 11,100 deaths between March and November of this year. As of today, the disease has killed more than 6,000 Haitians. A gradual improvement in access to clean water can save lives.
Chlorinators are relatively simple, low-cost systems that work by chlorinating a portion of the water that passes through a tank and mixing this water with the remaining water so that the effluent water from the tank has an appropriate dosage of chlorine. Chlorinators that are provided at the community level can ensure that households who come to collect water have an appropriate dosage of chlorine for a set quantity of water. The advantage of chlorinators over other treatment systems is that
Based on the results of a survey completed on our program, 76.9% of households who lived in a site with a chlorinator had positive chlorine residual greater or equal to the World Health Organization's standards. Out of all the households with positive chlorine residuals, 91.9% reported getting water from an International Action chlorinator. The households reported 0 cholera cases. International Acton's chlorinators are improving health and welfare in the most impoverished neighborhoods.
