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Madaba man dies from rabies, residents report seeing increasingly large packs of animals

By Maram Kayed - Nov 04,2018 - Last updated at Nov 04,2018

AMMAN — A Madaba man recently passed away after catching rabies and not immediately receiving proper treatment, making him the latest victim out of 5,913 total infection cases recorded in Jordan, according to Younes Talawi, director of Madaba’s health directorate.

The citizen, who was bit by a fox with rabies, “ignored the bite” and was only admitted to Nadeem Hospital in Madaba after he began showing signs of an infection. He later attacked one of his family members a few weeks after the incident, explained Talawi. 

Talawi said: “By the time his family brought him to the hospital he was already in the disease’s last stages. The hospital transferred him to another one in Amman, but nothing could be done, and he died a few days afterwards.”

Speaking with citizens residing in Madaba, incidents like these were thought of as happening on a regular basis, with many of them expressing special concerns for the safety of their children.

“We have told the municipality several times to address the issue, but have gotten no reply whatsoever. It’s dangerous to roam the streets for adults and children alike, but an attack like this on a child could cost them their life,” said Abu Shaker Rawajeeh, a 92 year-old-resident.

Hamzeh Daamseh, another resident, noted that rabies-infected wild dogs and foxes have “roamed the streets in larger numbers in the past couple of years, and we are reluctant to use our own guns to shoot them, since we are not authorised to do so”.

Figures provided by Madaba’s health directorate match Daamseh’s observations, as 376 attacks were recorded in 2017, contrasting with 129 in 2007.

The consequence of a dog or fox bite are not limited to health-issues such the rabies infection, which could lead to death if untreated, but they extend to financial terms, as the treatment costs more than JD300, stated Talawi.

He concluded: “Many people cannot afford JD300 for the treatment at a private hospital, so they either ignore the bite while hoping it didn’t give them rabies, or wait for treatment at a government hospital, which could take an extended period of time”.

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