More than 1900 people have died from an outbreak of cholera in Angola. (PHOTO: courtesy Reuters AlertNet.org)

AmeriCares is responding to the deadly cholera outbreak in Angola with an emergency shipment of medicines and medical supplies. The shipment, which arrived in mid-June in Luanda, was delivered to the Ministry of Health to support their fight against this massive outbreak that has killed 1,900 people. Cholera, an acute intestinal infection caused by contaminated water and food, causes severe diarrhea and dehydration and can lead to death within 24 hours. It is easily treated with antibiotics and rehydration solutions. The AmeriCares relief shipment, which was made possible through a generous grant from Chevron, contains enough cholera treatments to aid 4,000 people.