Karachi’s Water Crisis 95% Samples Contaminated with Deadly Naegleria
Tests conducted on water samples from 50 union councils in the city revealed that 95% of them were contaminated with the deadly Naegleria parasite.
Experts have attributed the alarming spread of Naegleria to the unauthorized extraction and sale of underground water, which is supplied through unregistered water tankers.
More than half of Karachi’s population relies on tanker-supplied water for their daily needs. While the Karachi Water Board has only 400 registered tankers, over 7,000 tankers operate daily, supplying water across the city without proper regulation.
Naegleria claims two more lives in Karachi
What is Naegleria?
Naegleria infection is caused by a ‘brain eating amoeba’ which is commonly found in freshwater lakes, rivers, or hot springs. You can also become infected by it while swimming in pools and engaging in other freshwater sports.
This amoeba usually travels through the nose and enters the brain, where is causes severe damage. The symptoms start to show within 24 hours of contact, and the amoeba can take your life within 7 days.
Symptoms:
Symptoms of Naegleria include high fever, headache, vomiting, and neck stiffness. At the final clinical stage, the virus can lead to coma.
Precautionary measures:
Chlorination is the key method to kill the germs and keep the life-taking disease at bay.
Another way is to use boiled water while cleaning nose as the germ enters through the nasal cavity of its victim and attacks the brain.
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