Shenyang, China — An inside source from Pyongyang has reported an outbreak of Paratyphoid Fever in the North Korean capital.
The source explained on Sunday, “A disease called ‘Paratyphus’ has been everywhere since the autumn of last year. Now that in some areas there is one patient for every two families, the North Korean authorities are trying to bring the situation under control.”
Paratyphoid Fever, or Paratyphus, is a disease caused by certain types of salmonella bacteria transmitted via contaminated food and water, flies and cockroaches, and as such is far more common in underdeveloped states than in the developed world.
Since the disease is bacterial and highly contagious, treatment is best done in isolation, while the area where the disease breaks out should be thoroughly disinfected.
However, a country with limited resources such as North Korea struggles to deal with such things. The source explained, “Paratyphus normally spreads through water and defecation, and has spread quickly now because the water pipes here are old and there is a lack of water treatment chemicals.”
“There is a water treatment plant in Nakrang district but there are no chemicals so the authorities are at a loss as to what to do,” the source went on.
Nevertheless, the North Korean authorities are doing what they are best at; working to control passage through areas where the disease is currently spreading in an effort to hinder its movement. According to the source, “Public Security Agency guard posts have been set up all over.”
In addition, the authorities are allegedly only approving travel for people carrying certificates confirming that they have been vaccinated against the disease. The vaccination and certificate are both officially free; however, this is not really the case in corruption-ridden North Korea.
Therefore, since the cost of the certificate is expensive and obtaining it troublesome, many small traders and other travelers are said to be bribing their way past the guard posts with money or cigarettes.
Such activities will not help to control a disease which has been fairly common in North Korea since the collapse of many state systems in the mid-1990s. One defector from Yangkang Province recalled, “In 1997, around 800 people died from ‘Para’ in Yangkang Province. People’s immune systems were low due to starvation, so the disease spread very rapidly.”
The source from Pyongyang predicted that people could die once again this time if the disease isn’t rapidly dealt with, saying, “Many people died during the March of Tribulation due to ‘Para’. I haven’t heard of a person dying of ‘Para’ yet, but those in the weak and vulnerable classes could be killed by it.”
Meanwhile, in an attempt to combat the disease in the absence of effective measures at the official level and high cost, the source said that treatments are now also being produced at home by those with the knowledge to do so.
However, the source added, “Medicines sold privately cannot be trusted, and everyone believes that Chinese-made drugs are no good.”
