Brazil sends medicines and vaccines to Haiti

The Brazilian government is going to send medicines and supplies to Haiti on Thursday (Dec. 8) to help the country recover from the destruction caused by hurricane Matthew in October. In addition to drugs and nearly 4,000 doses of cholera vaccine, the shipment includes 1,000 rapid HIV tests.

According to the Ministry of Health, the drugs are enough for 3,000 people. In October, the World Health Organization raised concerns about the threat of a cholera epidemic in the country as a result of the flooding caused by the hurricane.

"Before the hurricane, we had serious problems of access to health, water and sanitation, and cases of cholera. So when the water supply is interrupted, cholera will increase. We are seriously concerned about an epidemic," Jean-Luc Poncelet, a representative for the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) for Haiti, said in a statement at the time.

More than 1.3 million Haitians have been affected by the hurricane and need humanitarian aid. PAHO reports multinational expert teams have been called in to help.

In October, hurricane Matthew lashed Haiti with winds of 235 kilometers per hour, causing devastation throughout the Caribbean and Southeast of the United States.