Rats Feeding On Trash Increase Disease Threat In Flooded Bangkok

[webfact]

Rats Feeding on Trash Increase Disease Threat in Flooded Bangkok

Photo courtesy of: http://digifotoblog.com

Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Bangkok officials began paying residents to clear trash after doctors reported more cases of a potentially lethal rat-linked disease in flood-stricken areas.

The municipal government said it will pay 300 baht ($9.70) a day starting yesterday for 60 days to remove garbage in a city that normally produces 8,000 tons of waste daily. Concern that uncollected food scraps may be harboring vermin increased after Health Minister Wittaya Buranasiri said Nov. 9 seven people were being treated for leptospirosis, a bacterial infection spread in water contaminated with rat urine.

“We don’t want the rats to walk around finding food,” said Porntep Siriwanarangsun, director general of Thailand’s Department of Disease Control. “We have to take care of the garbage immediately.”

The specter of infectious epidemics is increasing as the battle to overcome the nation’s worst flood since 1942 stretches into the 15th week. Medical workers treated 4,684 people for influenza, 828 for diarrhea and 246 for conjunctivitis in 127 state shelters the past month in Ayutthaya, Nonthaburi and Pathum Thani provinces, the health ministry said this week.

“We are sending more mobile teams to cope with and combat infectious diseases,” Porntep said in a Nov. 8 interview.

Colds and skin diseases of the feet caused by contact with dirty water are the main complaints treated at evacuation shelters so far, he said, adding that leptospirosis is a key concern because the bacterium may persist in water for a month.

Anti-Garbage Campaign

“We are now in a campaign to get rid of garbage because this will attract rats, and the rat urine will leave the disease on small puddles of water on the ground,” Porntep said.

Humans become infected through direct contact with the urine of rats and other infected animals or with a urine- contaminated environment, according to the World Health Organization. The bacteria enter the body through cuts or abrasions on the skin, or through the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose and eyes.

In the early stages of the disease, symptoms include high fever, severe headache, muscle pain, chills, redness of the eyes, abdominal pain, jaundice, hemorrhages in the skin and mucous membranes, vomiting, diarrhea, and rash, the Geneva-based agency said.

Aid workers are delivering pre-prepared meals to displaced families to try to mitigate the risk, said Varabhorn Bhumiswasdi, director of the Priest Hospital in central Bangkok, who is leading a mobile medical team in Rangsit, a flooded area 20 kilometers (13 miles) north of the city center.

At a temporary shelter in Rangsit, villagers set up an outdoor kitchen, storing rice, raw fish and other food items in plastic bags. Trash was piled in a corner of the compound, which was shared with dogs and ducks.

No Cooking

“We tell people not to cook their own food at the shelters because we’re very worried about the garbage,” Varabhorn said. “We also warn them not to buy food from vendors because it may be unhygienic. That’s why we have to supply fresh cooked food three times a day, to prevent food poisoning and diarrhea.”

Varabhorn’s six-person team set up a makeshift clinic on a concrete bridge above the now-submerged village of Lak Hok. Patients are examined on an abandoned bed and dispensed medicines from the back of a truck.

“We’re mostly getting patients suffering from chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease,” she said. “Hospitals are flooded so they need continuing care from us.”

Floods increase the risk of water-borne diseases, including typhoid fever, cholera and hepatitis A, according to the WHO. Stagnant water may also encourage mosquitoes that can spread malaria and dengue fever, the United Nations agency says.

Bed Nets

The UN Children’s Fund is providing 20,000 insecticide- treated mosquito nets to help protect families evacuated to temporary shelters and living in other flood-ravaged areas in Thailand from dengue fever, it said on Oct. 27.

More than 530 people have died because of the floods, which inundated parts of 64 of Thailand’s 77 provinces and affected more than 11 million people, the government said yesterday. Twenty-four provinces are still affected.

“This is an urban emergency in a mega-city of about 10 million people,” said William Aldis, an assistant professor of global health at Bangkok’s Thammasat University and a former WHO representative to Thailand. Aldis said cholera, a life- threatening diarrheal disease spread by Vibrio cholerae bacteria, posed a particular public health threat.

“It’ll just take one person with cholera excreting millions of Vibrio cholerae into the floodwater and potentially into the drinking water, and then you would end up with a serious outbreak,” Aldis said over the telephone from his home in Nonthaburi, on the outskirts of Bangkok.

Cholera Threat

“We’ve seen cholera in cities before, but cholera in the midst of massive flooding within a city -- and where the drinking water is compromised -- the conditions are ripe for a major urban cholera outbreak,” he said. “I don’t know if anybody is prepared for that.”

Water supplies may have already been compromised after flood barriers were torn down by residents angry at being caught behind them, allowing floodwater to flow into canals used to produce tap water.

“So far it’s not very bad because infectious diseases are under control,” said Porntep at the Disease Control Department. “We have not seen salmonella or Vibrio cholerae in any of the flooded areas, and there hasn’t been any serious bacterial infection in diarrhea cases, just from food poisoning.”

Residents without access to safe, potable water are advised to boil publicly supplied tap water to kill any pathogens, he said.

“The tap water may be safe now, but we don’t know if the tap water will stay safe,” Porntep said.

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-10/rats-feeding-on-trash-increase-disease-threat-in-flooded-bangkok.html

-- businessweek.com 2011-11-11

[cowslip]

THe aftermath of this flooding.

Rats etc are the visible aspect of this and have a particular horror for humans....they are just one aspect of what the future holds....

Let us not forget the less visible but equally deadly (or even more deadly) aspects.

Pollution and waterborne diseases.

A massive amount of water has washed through the Chaophraya river system carrying with it huge amounts of silk and waste - industrial and domestic.

Many toxic substances was well as sewage and garbage will be deposited all over Bkk and the environs and possibly even worse, washed into the already polluted Gulf of Siam.

THe effects on water and sea quality as yet seem to have been ignored....apart form a fixation with balls.......and the effects on fish populations, fresh and saltwater as well as tourism need to be considered.

...and of course Dengue.

Edited November 11, 2011 by cowslip

[Friendlyisle]

Danger! Danger! Danger! Red alert for infectious water-borne diseases! I pray it's not, but this could quickly become a terrible thing!! Boil all suspect water at least 5 minutes!!

[travelmann]

Great information............caution treading on broken glass may hurt feet.

[fred110]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

[Just1Voice]

The flood itself has caused major damage and upset lives and businesses. But it could very well be possible that the "worst" is yet to come in the form of disease, illness and death from the polluted waters that have swept over everything. I've seen photos of kids out swimming and playing in the flood waters and can only wonder how many of them will soon be sick from this, and how many will die. I have a feeling the medical resources of Thailand are going to be seriously tested in the coming weeks and months.

[geriatrickid]

I can't wait for the first cholera panic. We'll be treated to visible ethnic groups being targeted. It's going to get very unpleasant for the Burmese people in Bangkok.

[metisdead]

An off topic post has been removed.

[travelmann]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

Quick trip when govt is in session should make us all rich then

[pogal]

In the place refuge center where I work there have been many cases in the last week of food poisoning from the pre-cooked meals. These refuge centers are full of people trying to do good for sure but they do not have the expertise to do it because they are all volunteers. I think many people have this western vision of the army running things all regimental and smooth. The food is being cooked outdoors in an area that gets more and more dirty everyday, hygiene is that of the local street vendors but on a massive scale. At night there are plenty of rats around mopping up the leftovers. I eat out of necessity choosing the foods I think have least chance of being contaminated. My friend just spent 2 days in hospital with severe diarrhea which could have only come from the food at the center.

People have also been donating expired food. I saw some milk powder for babies and the tin looked a little rusty so I check the date and it was 6 months expired. We then started checking all the dates on everything and there were many expired date of various goods. I'm sure they meant well donating it but particularly the baby food and medicines, they should have known better.

They are literally begging for volunteer doctors right now too! I asked why the government has not supplied a doctor and the manager said they are all too busy out in the public areas trying to get in the media. "Stuck in a out of the way relief shelter is not so good for their publicity profile" he said with some bitterness. At first there were lots of volunteer doctors from private hospitals but now almost none, as time wears on people are getting tired and also frustrated with management of almost everything. The manager would like to close the relief center down but just can't because there is nowhere else for these people to go. He is constantly fighting for even basic supplies and services. The government agencies come around, take photos for their portfolios and then leave promising supplies that never come or come too late.

Really the government is doing very little, its the NGO's, private companies and individual volunteers that are doing the majority of all the work and donations. There is supposed to be a huge budget for all of this.... where is it? I'm quite upset about the suffering of these people and the lack of help from the government, I'm not surprised that in 1995 the people burnt down the council building, I wouldn't be surprised if they do it again this year......

[finnomick1]

" We don't want the rats to walk around finding food " -- don't be silly, they've got boats now.... And, just where did all these rats suddenly appear from ? Of course, they weren't there before, were they ?

[khaowong1]

Thats going to be the kicker in this flood situation. Thais are not health concious as it is. Especially when it comes to food. I can see a cholera epidemic on the horizon.

[travelmann]

The flood itself has caused major damage and upset lives and businesses. But it could very well be possible that the "worst" is yet to come in the form of disease, illness and death from the polluted waters that have swept over everything. I've seen photos of kids out swimming and playing in the flood waters and can only wonder how many of them will soon be sick from this, and how many will die. I have a feeling the medical resources of Thailand are going to be seriously tested in the coming weeks and months.

I too have marvelled as the kids play in shi**y water whilst the parents smile on oblivious, shoudlt the govt have a big campaign, stay out of the water when possible etc

Sorry stupid me better to have a good photo op, here filthy water urchin have some precooked meat ( which will kill you anyway) and dont forget to wai me till your head goes underwater as you recieve this gift from "Uncle" or is it "Auntie"

[bitewhentested]

im sick of this government already all they do is give conflicting information there's a teenager in charge of a country of children or thats the way it has felt to me over the last six years

they say the water is safe they say dont worry no need to panic then the next minute they give evacuation orders why dont they have any clear leadership and the people of thialand are made

to suffer due to greedy self serving mps with no real interest in helping any one but there bank accounts

taksin has not done anything not one single thing since this flood started no tv address no donation of funds not so much as a kind word until this happened all this government did

was try to insure his return and what do the people get for there trust and sacrifice nothing no 300 bht minimum pay no 15.000 bht for a graduate not that for one second i ever thought they would

receive it

i live in the north of thialand i spent a clp of days driving around helping people in my truck move there belongings to dry ground i never saw one single army truck or the police assisting

any one the only people that seemed to help was the expat community and normal thai people in a way it was a good thing to see people pulling together but with no help

from the government services at all my thia friends that put there faith in this government feel confused let down and angry this is or was a red shirt strong hold

but im telling you now taksin and your clone you are losing your grip step aside let someone with more morales and less ego take over

it will take more than a photo of you handing out aid to water logged thais to regain the peoples faith you have lost with your weak handling of this disaster

[onionluke]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

In 2010 there was a plague of rats in Burma (BBC), due to the seeding of bamboo forrests, so the the junta put a cash reward for each rat tail delivered .

[travelmann]

im sick of this government already all they do is give conflicting information there's a teenager in charge of a country of children or thats the way it has felt to me over the last six years

they say the water is safe they say dont worry no need to panic then the next minute they give evacuation orders why dont they have any clear leadership and the people of thialand are made

to suffer due to greedy self serving mps with no real interest in helping any one but there bank accounts

taksin has not done anything not one single thing since this flood started no tv address no donation of funds not so much as a kind word until this happened all this government did

was try to insure his return and what do the people get for there trust and sacrifice nothing no 300 bht minimum pay no 15.000 bht for a graduate not that for one second i ever thought they would

receive it

i live in the north of thialand i spent a clp of days driving around helping people in my truck move there belongings to dry ground i never saw one single army truck or the police assisting

any one the only people that seemed to help was the expat community and normal thai people in a way it was a good thing to see people pulling together but with no help

from the government services at all my thia friends that put there faith in this government feel confused let down and angry this is or was a red shirt strong hold

but im telling you now taksin and your clone you are losing your grip step aside let someone with more morales and less ego take over

it will take more than a photo of you handing out aid to water logged thais to regain the peoples faith you have lost with your weak handling of this disaster

Take off those rose tinted spectacles and get real........... my good man, you thai basher you

[brandy]

the water might actually give Bangkok a wash, it sure needed it last time I was there.

[meatboy]

why dont they give proper information regarding this disease leptospirosis is a name for many kinds of fevers,weil's disease as its known,chidren under 5years old and anyone over 65 are more at risk,publish the symptoms like flu-related and most severe internal bleeding,i saw a freind die from this he was a very fit rugby player who was taking part in a raft race on our local river he contracted it through a very small cut on his leg.i will never forget the suffering he had before he died.

[theanimaster]

It's nice how Dr. Pornthep keeps reassuring us that everything will be fine and peachy just because she says it's so. Forget about mentioning even a SLIGHT chance that the sh*t will hit the fan and what plans (or lack thereof) the government has in place to control the situation if it ever does have a slim chance in hell of happening.

...and to think I once admire this doctor. It's clear she's been bought, just like every other prominent media figure.

... really upset to hear Pogal's account of the situation. I mean, I knew the government was f*cked up, but to hear a first-hand account like this... amazing. Amazing. I can only HOPE that the people will wake up to this fact, and I parrot this over and over... but they do need to wake up. Otherwise it really is only the rich that are benefitting from this whole fiasco, and to see the poor being used like this... it's just sick. I mean, it's not their fault for being ignorant, brainwashed and 'controlled'... now if only there were a way for people in the know to get across to them??

[OzMick]

“We don’t want the rats to walk around finding food,”

Flooding can't be too severe if the rats can walk through it.

[ratcatcher]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

Quick trip when govt is in session should make us all rich then

You beat me to it!

[pogal]

im sick of this government already all they do is give conflicting information there's a teenager in charge of a country of children or thats the way it has felt to me over the last six years

they say the water is safe they say dont worry no need to panic then the next minute they give evacuation orders why dont they have any clear leadership and the people of thialand are made

to suffer due to greedy self serving mps with no real interest in helping any one but there bank accounts

taksin has not done anything not one single thing since this flood started no tv address no donation of funds not so much as a kind word until this happened all this government did

was try to insure his return and what do the people get for there trust and sacrifice nothing no 300 bht minimum pay no 15.000 bht for a graduate not that for one second i ever thought they would

receive it

i live in the north of thialand i spent a clp of days driving around helping people in my truck move there belongings to dry ground i never saw one single army truck or the police assisting

any one the only people that seemed to help was the expat community and normal thai people in a way it was a good thing to see people pulling together but with no help

from the government services at all my thia friends that put there faith in this government feel confused let down and angry this is or was a red shirt strong hold

but im telling you now taksin and your clone you are losing your grip step aside let someone with more morales and less ego take over

it will take more than a photo of you handing out aid to water logged thais to regain the peoples faith you have lost with your weak handling of this disaster

Take off those rose tinted spectacles and get real........... my good man, you thai basher you

He is bashing the government (and deservedly so) not all Thais. His friends are Thai. He is helping Thais and has praise and admiration for those "normal" Thais (as I do), he feels sorry for them and is frustrated about those in power as most of us are no matter what government is in power (I don't agree about the Red Shirt comment but then I don't live where he does). These comments are born from frustration at the government and people who abuse their power because, I believe, the farang that live here love this country and it's people but they are frustrated to see the inequalities, corruption and sadness that many of our Thai friends live with. My own negative (and sometimes positive) comments and frustration are because I love it here and I spend all my time helping or supporting others to try and make peoples lives more bearable. My best friends are Thai and I love them like family and so I can understand this mans comments. I'm sure he loves Thailand very much, probably a lot more than you by the sounds of it. Watching people suffer can bring out the worst in us all.

How do you figure that this is "Thai bashing"?

[Skorz]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

thats a bit mean.

Make it 5 thb and I'll ship my air rifle over.

[bitewhentested]

im sick of this government already all they do is give conflicting information there's a teenager in charge of a country of children or thats the way it has felt to me over the last six years

they say the water is safe they say dont worry no need to panic then the next minute they give evacuation orders why dont they have any clear leadership and the people of thialand are made

to suffer due to greedy self serving mps with no real interest in helping any one but there bank accounts

taksin has not done anything not one single thing since this flood started no tv address no donation of funds not so much as a kind word until this happened all this government did

was try to insure his return and what do the people get for there trust and sacrifice nothing no 300 bht minimum pay no 15.000 bht for a graduate not that for one second i ever thought they would

receive it

i live in the north of thialand i spent a clp of days driving around helping people in my truck move there belongings to dry ground i never saw one single army truck or the police assisting

any one the only people that seemed to help was the expat community and normal thai people in a way it was a good thing to see people pulling together but with no help

from the government services at all my thia friends that put there faith in this government feel confused let down and angry this is or was a red shirt strong hold

but im telling you now taksin and your clone you are losing your grip step aside let someone with more morales and less ego take over

it will take more than a photo of you handing out aid to water logged thais to regain the peoples faith you have lost with your weak handling of this disaster

Take off those rose tinted spectacles and get real........... my good man, you thai basher you

if you mean thai basher in that i bash the government yes you are 100 percent correct but i feel nothing but pity for normal thai people

[Card]

“We don’t want the rats to walk around finding food,” said Porntep Siriwanarangsun

Is he serious? Why are there so many rats in the first place? There is always food discarded all over BKK.

And rats don't walk, they scurry.

[bitewhentested]

im sick of this government already all they do is give conflicting information there's a teenager in charge of a country of children or thats the way it has felt to me over the last six years

they say the water is safe they say dont worry no need to panic then the next minute they give evacuation orders why dont they have any clear leadership and the people of thialand are made

to suffer due to greedy self serving mps with no real interest in helping any one but there bank accounts

taksin has not done anything not one single thing since this flood started no tv address no donation of funds not so much as a kind word until this happened all this government did

was try to insure his return and what do the people get for there trust and sacrifice nothing no 300 bht minimum pay no 15.000 bht for a graduate not that for one second i ever thought they would

receive it

i live in the north of thialand i spent a clp of days driving around helping people in my truck move there belongings to dry ground i never saw one single army truck or the police assisting

any one the only people that seemed to help was the expat community and normal thai people in a way it was a good thing to see people pulling together but with no help

from the government services at all my thia friends that put there faith in this government feel confused let down and angry this is or was a red shirt strong hold

but im telling you now taksin and your clone you are losing your grip step aside let someone with more morales and less ego take over

it will take more than a photo of you handing out aid to water logged thais to regain the peoples faith you have lost with your weak handling of this disaster

Take off those rose tinted spectacles and get real........... my good man, you thai basher you

He is bashing the government (and deservedly so) not all Thais. His friends are Thai. He is helping Thais and has praise and admiration for those "normal" Thais (as I do), he feels sorry for them and is frustrated about those in power as most of us are no matter what government is in power (I don't agree about the Red Shirt comment but then I don't live where he does). These comments are born from frustration at the government and people who abuse their power because, I believe, the farang that live here love this country and it's people but they are frustrated to see the inequalities, corruption and sadness that many of our Thai friends live with. My own negative (and sometimes positive) comments and frustration are because I love it here and I spend all my time helping or supporting others to try and make peoples lives more bearable. My best friends are Thai and I love them like family and so I can understand this mans comments. I'm sure he loves Thailand very much, probably a lot more than you by the sounds of it. Watching people suffer can bring out the worst in us all.

How do you figure that this is "Thai bashing"?

thanks you seem to of understood my point in no way was i bashing thais only the government iv lived here for 6 years so of course i love my adopted home or would of left years ago

it just saddens me to see people suffer in a lot of cases needlessly no one can be blamed for the floods only the bad handling of it

yes im angry at the government so call me a thai basher by all means but my anger is only directed at this shameless greedy corrupted self serving government

[cowslip]

the water might actually give Bangkok a wash, it sure needed it last time I was there.

well done!

A completely fatuous reply - have you no idea of what a mess is carried in flood water??????

[cowslip]

Great information............caution treading on broken glass may hurt feet.

Cuts and abrasions in this water can lead to such diseases as tetanus.

getting a cut is SERIOUS stuff. An infected wound untreated could result in loss of limb.

[cowslip]

They should put a one baht bounty on rats.

...and what do you do with the dead rats.....they aren't really the problem - they are a symptom.

[humqdpf]

" We don't want the rats to walk around finding food " -- don't be silly, they've got boats now.... And, just where did all these rats suddenly appear from ? Of course, they weren't there before, were they ?

Rats eating trash will not increase disease threat in Bangkok. What did the writer think the rats ate before? Caviar perhaps?

THe real issue, as another correspondent pointed out, is water borne disease (cholera being the really serious one). Leptospirosis could be an issue if the same water stays around for a long time, allowing it to be infected by rats but also other animals (including dogs and many other animals that also carry leptospirosis).

Hunger will also become an issue as donation fatigue, supply chains and means of payment wither away. With hunger, thirst and a degredation of the means of boiling water and cooking food thoroughly, disease naturally rises. One is more likely to drink suspect water, east suspect food and not boil water (because fuel has run out) in crisis situations, such as massive flooding.

In very serious crises, rats can become a resource - it kept many a family alive during conflict situations throughout the world as long as they had the means to cook the meat.

What is really needed is a concerted effort to deal with the crisis and prevent it from becoming a catastrophy. Organizing food supply and clean water solutions, transport for those who need it and prompt medical care. What we don't need is more scarce resources going on rat hunts. Yes you will see more rats in exposed areas during floods because their usual hiding places are not available to them because they are submerged. But many of them succumb to the floods, as the photo under the misleading headline suggests (a photo of drowned rats!)