3 more die from measles symptoms, death toll hits 94

Staff Reporter:

Three people died from measles-like symptoms in the 24 hours till Friday morning, bringing the total death toll to 94 over the past 19 days.

In the 24 hours till 8am Friday, 947 people were hospitalised with measles symptoms, said the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) in an update.

The total caseload has reached 5,792 so far this year, DGHS said.

A sudden measles outbreak is straining the country’s health facilities amid an acute shortage of vaccines. Infant children dominate the list of fatalities and infections so far.

To address the crisis, the government has cancelled leaves of all public healthcare workers, and is preparing to launch a special immunization drive from Sunday.