Benue State is having a problem with a sickness called Lassa fever. It has made nine people die in the last two months.
The state’s health expert, Dr. Sam Ngishe, told reporters about this on Thursday. He said that some of the people who died were living in places called Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps.
Dr. Ngishe explained that there are many rats in the IDP camps. These rats can spread the sickness.
He said if the rats are in the camps, they need to work hard to stop more people from getting sick.
So far, 46 people, including health workers and people in the IDP camps, have gotten sick with this disease in the state.
Dr. Ngishe said that four people got sick in one camp called Ortese IDP camp in Guma Local Government Area.
The sickness has also spread to seven other areas in the state, including Obi, Okpokwu, Gwer West, Makurdi, Guma, Gwer East, and Ukum.
Sadly, nine people have died from this sickness. They were buried according to safety rules in different parts of the state where they came from.
To stop more people from getting sick, the government is doing some things. They are making sure that people who died are buried safely.
They are also trying hard to reduce how many people are dying from the sickness. Right now, more people are dying than the usual number in the country, which is 10 percent.
Dr. Ngishe said that they need to watch closely for anyone getting sick, tell people about the risks, and get everyone in the community involved. He also talked about how hard it is in the IDP camps.
They have problems with keeping things clean, too many people in one place, and not enough good food, which makes it easier for sicknesses to spread.
“We are watching closely in the community, especially in the Ortese IDP camp. We know that the camp is not very clean, too many people live close together, and they don’t always have enough good food,” he said.
