JUNE 16, 2023 - As violence rages in West Darfur, wounded people are coming in waves to Adré hospital in Chad, where they are being treated by MSF and Ministry of Health teams. At least 242 wounded were received on 15 June alone, and 348 on 16 June.
A total of at least 622 injured patients have been brought into Adré hospital in the course of the last three days. Among them, about 430 are in need of surgical care. Some are being referred to other hospitals in Abéché. Most of the injuries are gunshot wounds.
“The situation is frankly overwhelming, but everyone is doing their utmost to cope with it”, said Dr Seybou Diarra, MSF project coordinator in Adré. “We've had to discharge stable paediatric patients to bring in the paediatrics medical team to help out. Additional staff from the Chadian Ministry of Health are also working with us and some of the off-duty staff were called back to lend a hand. But with only one surgical team in place, we are overwhelmed in the operating theatre, we urgently need more beds and more staff”
A large portion of the wounded are coming from El Geneina, the capital of Sudan's West Darfur state, and its surroundings, which is the scene of ongoing and intense violence. Local sources report that at least 1,100 people have been killed in El Geneina city since the conflict began in mid-April.
“After nearly two months, we are only now starting to see people managing to escape from El-Geneina and make their way to Chad,” added Claire Nicolet, MSF head of emergency programs. “Yet thousands of people are likely to remain stranded, amid reports of intensifying and large-scale attacks this week”.
MSF teams, who have been working in Adré since 2021, set up a small emergency surgical unit in the district hospital a month ago in response to the conflict spreading on the other side of the border. They are also expanding medical activities to meet the increasing needs of Sudanese refugees in the area. Approximately 6,000 people have fled El Geneina and taken refuge in Adré over the last few days, joining more than 100,000 others who have already fled Sudan for safety in eastern Chad since mid-April.