TIMERGARA - A mysterious disease has so far killed at least four people in Barimki Bala, Barimki Payeen and Barimki Kharkai villages at union council Khanpur of tehsil Adenzai in Lower Dir, while two others had been suffering from the disease, official and local sources said.
Those killed by the fatal disease include Gulai Bibi, 60, resident of Barimki village and wife of Gul Haider (3 years ago Gul Haider’s daughter-in-law was also killed by the same disease), Ram Qavi, 35, wife of Noor Khan and resident of Barimki Bala, Naila, 18, daughter of Habib Rahim and Wasif Khan, 7, son of Rahmani Gul resident of Kharkai Bariki.
Three years ago, the same mysterious disease had taken seven lives in the area. Though the Lower Dir health department had dispatched medical teams to the area and besides conducting fumigation in the area, blood and water samples had also been collected to identify the causes of the disease but no clear cause had been identified.
EPI Lower Dir coordinator Dr Irshad told The Nation that a special medical team had been dispatched to the area on the directives of DHO Dir Lower Dr Shaukat Ali and samples of water and blood from 200 residents had been collected but so far no clear causes of the disease had been pointed out.
"Lower Dir health department has planned fumigation, which would be conducted very soon in the area," Dr Irshad added.
Village Council Chairman Barimkay Sherin Zada demanded secretary health Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa to take practical measures to identify causes of the fatal disease to protect precious lives of the inhabitants.
He demanded the Lower Dir health department to immediately conduct fumigation in the area to control spread of the fatal disease.