30 December 2013 - Tens of thousands of South Sudanese have arrived in Awerial, Lakes State, after fleeing violence in nearby Bor, according to a statement issued today by the international medical organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

With thousands more people arriving each day from the Jonglei State capital, living conditions are verging on catastrophic, and increased medical and humanitarian assistance is urgently needed, says MSF.

Following intense fighting last week between government and anti-government forces in Bor, more than 70,000 people, mostly women and children, fled to gather around the town of Awerial on the far side of the river Nile, some 50 kilometres from the capital.

“The situation for these women and children is very alarming,” says Aurélie Dupont, MSF’s emergency coordinator in Awerial. “They have fled their homes and have arrived here with few belongings. There is no clean water, no food, and no place to shelter or sleep. They are relying solely on the help of the local population.”

MSF’s emergency team is giving consultations and medicine to the two Ministry of Health clinics that are still running. It is also providing clean drinking water to prevent cases of diarrhoea, vaccinating children against measles and providing obstetric care for pregnant women. Another major concern is provision of food, which needs to be scaled up urgently.

“The potential for disease is enormous,” says David Nash, MSF’s head of mission in South Sudan. “There is an urgent need for clean water, latrines and waste management. We urgently need other organizations to step up and provide humanitarian aid as more and more people flee the violence.”

Emergency teams are being deployed to reinforce MSF’s existing activities and to respond to needs as they arise.