Janice Haney Carr / CDCIn February, the bacillus Vibrio cholerae traveled from East Africa to Northern EuropeJanice Haney Carr / CDC
In January, two Ethiopians traveled to Ethiopia, purchased a plastic bottle of water from the holy well in Bermel Giorgis, and returned to Berlin. In February, the pair and a third person who may have ingested some of the water were hospitalized with acute diarrhea and vomiting. They recovered, but a strain of the bacillus cholera (Vibrio cholerae) was isolated from fecal samples of all three. That same month, the same multidrug-resistant strain was isolated from the feces of three people in London who had traveled to Bermel Giorgis and used the water to prepare food. A fourth fell ill after drinking holy water brought back from Ethiopia. They also all recovered. Between August 2022 and February 2025, a cholera outbreak in Ethiopia affected 58,381 people and caused 726 deaths. In February, the sacred well of Bermel Giorgis, which attracts pilgrims from all over the world, was identified as a source of contamination. Its holy water is consumed or used in baths for physical or spiritual healing. It is not sold, but it can be taken home by visitors (Eurosurveillance, April 10).
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