After the flood...

Disease fears in dirty water | £10.6billion of aid promised

- Patrick Hill

SURVIVORS of the catastrophic floods in Spain face a new threat from disease, with doctors bracing for a wave of illnesses linked to the now filthy, stagnant water.

Experts warn people are at risk of mosquito-borne diseases and skin infections, as well as gastroenteritis and Hepatitis A after the disaster, which killed at least 218 people and flooded thousands of properties.

People in flood-hit areas are now being urged to get vaccinated against Tetanus, while also facing warnings about Weil's disease, a potentially fatal blood infection contracted from animals, soil or water. Public health specialist Pedro Gullon said: "A flood of these characteristics brings public health problems we need to be aware of, linked mainly to the accumulation of water and sewage.