Coimbatore Corporation screened 1,813 people on the first day of a six-day special medical camp drive launched after recent heavy rainfall, while sanitation and drinking-water checks were intensified in areas affected by water accumulation.
The camps were held on Tuesday at 33 locations linked to the city’s urban primary health centres. Each location was staffed by a three-member team comprising a doctor, a nurse and an assistant.
The drive covered Ram Nagar, Sastri Nagar, Selvapuram North Housing Unit, Nesavalar Colony and Government Officers Colony, among other areas where rainwater had accumulated before being cleared by corporation workers.
City health officer Dr V C Subash Gandhi said nine of the 1,813 people examined were diagnosed with fever. They were referred to government hospitals for further evaluation and blood tests, he said.
The corporation plans to continue the camps for the next five days, shifting teams to different locations. Officials said the focus would remain on inundated areas and low-lying zones vulnerable to stagnant water and infections. Mobile teams and Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram teams will also be deployed, with the latter focusing on schoolchildren.
The response combines medical screening with preventive measures aimed at reducing the health risks that follow heavy rainfall. Health teams distributed oral rehydration solution and a Siddha herbal formulation, while health inspectors checked chlorine levels in drinking water. Sanitation teams carried out mass cleaning and sprayed disinfectants in affected localities.
Residents were advised to consume only boiled drinking water to reduce the risk of water-borne illnesses, including diarrhoea, typhoid and jaundice. Officials also cautioned residents against contact with potentially contaminated water, which can transmit leptospirosis after heavy rainfall and flooding.
The corporation’s warnings also cover mosquito-borne diseases. Stagnant water can create breeding sites for mosquitoes, increasing the risk of dengue and other infections. Residents have been urged to remove water collected in discarded containers, tyres, coconut shells and flowerpots.
The six-day programme places urban primary health centres at the centre of the city’s immediate post-rain response. Its deployment across affected neighbourhoods, alongside water-quality checks, cleaning and disinfection, is intended to address both reported illness and the environmental conditions that can allow infections to spread.
