Six children die of measles in Umarkot

UMARKOT (92 News) – Six children died of measles in Umarkot during a fortnight. The rescue teams could not reach the area, 20km away from Umarkot, were dozens of children are still suffering from the disease. The area is renowned for abundance of snakes. Locals told 92 News that no Health Department team has ever visited the area for immunization of children. No ambulance was available to shift the deceased to their houses from Civil Hospital. The Health Department has established a temporary camp in a village. However, no step has been taken at the government level to deal with the outbreak of the disease. When contacted, the Umarkot DHO said that a majority of people in the area are gypsies and they often live away from their houses. “For this reason, children cannot be immunized,” he maintained.