A seasonal viral fever that had gripped Rudu village in Tilagufa Municipality has now spread to the neighbouring Chilkhaya village.

The disease has so far claimed the life of one 13-year-old girl while more than 300 villagers have fallen ill in Rudu village. The symptoms include fever, sore throat and headache, sore tonsils, spots on the face and numbness in the hands and feet.

According to Bikram Bahadur Shahi, a local resident, the infection in Chilkhaya was detected a day after nine health workers including three doctors from the District Hospital, Manma and Tilagufa Municipality Hospital returned after examining the health of 311 patients and distributing medicines.

“The team of doctors who came to Rudu stayed in the village for a day, examined over 300 people, distributed medicines for cold and fever and returned to Manma, the district headquarters,” said Shahi. “But the infected people are still bedridden and now the infection has spread to Chilkhaya.”

Dr Ramanand Chaudhary of the district hospital said that the medical team’s preliminary diagnosis suggested that seasonal viral fever had spread in Rudu village.

“The symptoms are similar to seasonal viral fever,” said Chaudhary. “However, a definitive diagnosis can be made only after conducting lab tests on the samples collected from the patients.”

Chaudhary said that blood samples of nine people and swabs samples of 10 patients have been sent to Surkhet for laboratory testing.

Chaudhary also said the outbreak can be attributed to unhygienic living conditions in the villages.

Mun Bahadur Thapa, the ward chairman of Tilagufa-10, said that the village areas have become polluted as diseased sheep and goats have been dying since mid-May. “Cows and oxen have been dying since in the village from the lumpy skin disease,” he said. “Animal carcasses are being left in the open.”

Katak Mahat, information officer at the Health Service Office, confirmed that viral fever patients were also seen in Chilkhaya.

Principal Basant Prasad Upadhyay said that the Shivalaya Secondary School has been closed for three days after 37 students developed fever on Sunday.

“Some of the students had symptoms similar to those reported in Rudu village,” said Upadhyay, “We have shut down the school on July 10-13 to prevent the spread of the disease.”

Dr Sanket Bishwakarma, acting manager at the Health Service Office, said that despite several cases in Rudu, the number of infected individuals recovering has increased too.

“The 13-year-old girl who died following the infection was also suffering from tuberculosis,” said Bishwakarma. “Meanwhile, others are recovering and the health team has also handed the remaining medicines over to the Chilkhaya health post.”

Meanwhile, Tilagufa Municipality’s Deputy Mayor Mahendra Bahadur Shahi said that the municipality has already deployed medical personnel to the villages along with medicines.

“The situation in the municipality is not as bad as it is being reported,” said Deputy Mayor Shahi. “There is seasonal viral fever in the majority of the villages in the municipality and it should be taken as a common incidence.”

Deputy Mayor Shahi said that if the situation worsens, the municipality will send the medical team back to the villages.