Notice of correction, 27 Aug. 2014: The headline and text of this article as originally published stated that 69 people died of malaria, citing a state health official. The source, Dr Agai K. Akec, Director for Preventive Medicine, actually put the number at 29 and not 69. He was misquoted. The headline and text of the article have been corrected accordingly.

The death toll from suspected cases of malaria and typhoid in Warrap, South Sudan hit 29 Wednesday as the state ministry of health announced the outbreak is likely to worsen.

State Director of Preventive Medicine Agai Kerubino Akec told Radio Tamazuj he was appalled by the spread of disease in Tonj North County in particular and that he predicted the situation will deteriorate because rural health facilities cannot cope.

“Because there are various inaccessible areas due to poor roads connecting seven counties in the state, the figures of patients could be higher than what we have shown now,” he said.

Kerubino, who is also the state's coordinator of emergency operations, said there have been 137 total cases.  He blamed the outbreak on Warrap's lack of healthcare services in remote payams, adding that local residents' use of traditional medicines for treatment and an acute shortage of mosquito nets exacerbates the problem.

Kerubino appealed to citizens to use medication prescribed by doctors. He also urged authorities and health organizations to provide better services in remote areas.

On Tuesday 12 August, the Tonj North County Commissioner announced the outbreak of the malaria outbreak in the Alabek payam, where 48 people had died including sub chief Tong Malueth. Commissioner Marko Wuoc Kuot said that day that the county had run out of anti-malaria medicine.

The state ministry warned as early as June that its stocks of malaria drugs were low.

Public health facilities in neighbouring Northern Bahr al Ghazal have also run of malaria drugs, according to that state's director of pharmaceutical services.

Related:

Tonj North malaria outbreak kills 48 as drugs run out

N. Bahr el Ghazal clinics run out of malaria drugs

Shortage of malaria medicines in Warrap State

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