{"id":7456,"date":"2013-07-31T21:44:53","date_gmt":"2013-07-31T21:44:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigeria-news\/nigerian-village-cleared-of-deadly-lead-poisoning\/"},"modified":"2013-07-31T21:44:53","modified_gmt":"2013-07-31T21:44:53","slug":"nigerian-village-cleared-of-deadly-lead-poisoning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigerian-village-cleared-of-deadly-lead-poisoning\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigerian village cleared of deadly lead poisoning"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Medical charity MSF said Wednesday a Nigerian village in Zamfara State that suffered an unprecedented and deadly lead poisoning outbreak had been cleared of the toxin, but that nearly 1,000 exposed children needed treatment.<\/p>\n
The crisis in the northwest state first came to light in 2010, and was “the worst outbreak ever recorded,” Medecins Sans Frontieres said. At least 400 children have died from poisoning.<\/p>\n
Lead exposure in several areas of Zamfara was blamed on unsafe techniques used in extracting gold. Illegal mining is more lucrative than agriculture for impoverished farming communities.<\/p>\n
Initially, the communities had largely concealed or denied the fatalities and illness that came from lead poisoning for fear that authorities would ban mining activities.<\/p>\n
The problem was compounded by a requirement that medical staff clear the entire area of toxins before treatment could begin.<\/p>\n
Michelle Chouinard, MSF’s Nigeria country director, said the cleanup process was completed on July 15 in Bagega, the worst affected village.<\/p>\n