NAIROBI, 22 September 2008 (IRIN) - Authorities in Burao in the self-declared republic of Somaliland are struggling to contain an outbreak of watery diarrhoea, medical sources said on 22 September.

"The outbreak began on 13 September and so far we have registered 261 cases and no fatalities," Adan Ilmi Diriye, the regional medical officer, told IRIN.

The biggest one-day caseload was on 13 September, with 92 cases, he said, adding, "so far today we have registered 16 cases".

Diriye blamed the outbreak on contaminated water drawn from wells in the area. "We had rains and we suspect the problem is the water people are drinking has been contaminated."

A task-force consisting of local authorities and aid agencies based in Burao, chaired by the regional medical officer, has been set up to deal with the outbreak. An awareness campaign was also under way.

"We are using every avenue to reach people," Diriye added. "Even the mosques have been involved in passing information to avoid contracting the disease."

Two wards in Burao general hospital were being used as a treatment centre. "If we feel we need to use a bigger place we will set it up, "he said.

As part of the efforts to contain the outbreak, Diriye said: "We have started chlorination of water wells and we are distributing water purification tablets directly to families in affected areas."

The worst-affected parts of the city were the October and Jarmalka neighbourhoods.

Diriye said the Somaliland government had sent enough drugs to deal with the problem and "we are changing our plans day to day to stay on top of it and be prepared if the situation gets worse".

He said there was no sign of a slowdown. "I am, however, confident that with our awareness campaigns and the work of the task-force, we will be able to contain it."

Source: IRIN