Chinese medical team starts epidemic prevention in Laos after dam breaks
By Sun Guangyong and Zhao Yipu
People's Daily app
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(Photos: People's Daily/ Zhao Yipu)

China’s PLA Peace Train medical team on Friday started working on epidemic containment after a dam burst triggered a flash flood in southern Attapeu Province, southern Laos.

A 32-member medical contingent was seen checking cleanliness and disinfecting drinking water and portable toilets, as well as killing mosquitoes and insects to prevent potential epidemic outbreaks.

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Until late Friday, some 2,000 displaced villagers were sheltered in the Sanamxay District, the most affected area with six villages flooded.

The Chinese contingent said there were cases of fever and diarrhea, which implied the possibility of an outbreak so they had to work with local authorities to prevent a further spread and they had already submitted a proposal on disease prevention to the Lao government and Lao army. 

The PLA medical team, on the "Peace Train-2018" Humanitarian Medical Rescue Joint Training Mission in the Lao capital of Vientiane, was dispatched to the flood-affected area on Wednesday. It included medics specialized in epidemic prevention, pest control and food and drinking water hygiene, who are equipped with a disease control and prevention vehicle capable of sterilization. 

(Compiled by Shan Xin)