Anthrax in Sirajganj

At least one more person was confirmed and four others were suspected to be infected with anthrax in Shahzadpur upazila of Sirajganj, local health officials confirmed yesterday.
They are Helal Sheikh, 25, of Baghabari village, Bulbuli Khatun, 45, Hafizul Islam, 15, Md Dulal, 10, and Md Nayan Hossain, 16, of Binnadari village.
Local health officials said the lesions on his face were due to anthrax, Helal said. He thinks he was infected after consuming meat two weeks ago from Bera Bazar.
Meanwhile, the affected villagers of Binnadari said they fell sick after consuming meat of a diseased goat on March 25. The local health workers claimed they had contracted anthrax.
Helal was diagnosed to be carrying germs of anthrax, Dr Abdur Rahman, resident medical officer of Shahzadpur upazila health complex, told The Daily Star.
“The other victims are yet to come to the upazila health complex,” Rahman added.
Dr Abul Fayez, civil surgeon of the district, said the area is reputed for a dairy farm and has a large number of cows. Thus, a good number of them are being infected every day.
At least four people were infected with anthrax in the same village on March 9 this year. This is the second consecutive incident of anthrax in the same area, upazila health officials said.