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Lebanon: Heat wave adds to the woes of Syrian refugees in Bekaa Valley

24 Aug 2015
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It’s been less than five minutes since Médécins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) health promotion team stepped inside the tent of a Syrian refugee family, and already pearls of perspiration are trickling down their faces.

The last few weeks have brought unprecedented temperatures to much of the Middle East.

In Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, home to at least 410,000 refugees, temperatures have reached as high as 42 Celsius.

The heat isn’t just bringing discomfort; it’s bringing sickness.

Informal tented settlements

Many Syrians in the Bekaa live in unfinished buildings or in one of over 900 informal tented settlements (ITS) haphazardly erected in fields or along the roadside.

The flimsy plastic sheeting that make up the walls and roofs of the ITS offers little respite from the blazing sun.

Dust blows in and out of these homes, and the air is thick with humidity and flies.

Access to clean water is limited and sewage often leaks into the areas surrounding the tents, where children play.

Poor living conditions

At MSF’s four clinics across the Bekaa, more than half of the patients currently seeking treatment are suffering illnesses resulting from the hot weather.

“In summer, we always see a lot of respiratory tract infections, gastro-intestinal problems, such as diarrhoea, and dermatological problems,“ says Dr Bilal Qassem at MSF’s clinic in Baalbek.

“These morbidities are all directly linked to the poor living conditions our patients endure. We’ve seen a 20 percent increase in the usual summer morbidities compared to last year, possibly because of the recent heat wave.”  

In June and July, upper and lower respiratory infections counted for over 42 percent of the diseases treated by MSF in the Bekaa.  

In July, watery diarrhoea and gastro-intestinal problems amounted to 23 percent of the diseases treated.

Skin diseases

With limited access to clean water and overcrowded tents, skin diseases like scabies are also common.

As the health promotion team prepares to leave the ITS, a man rushes over to show them red welts covering his belly and arms, the telltale sign of scabies.

“Because of the cramped living conditions, when one person gets sick, everybody else gets sick too,” says Dr Wael Harb, head of MSF's medical activities in the Bekaa.

“We provide medicine and our health promotion teams explain how to reduce the spread of infection, but we can’t change the underlying cause of these problems, which are poor hygiene and precarious living conditions,” he adds.

“The winter is worse”

As the seasons change, so too will the challenges for refugees.

“The summer is hard, yes, but winter is much, much worse,” says Leila*, a Syrian mother of five living in an ITS near Majdal Anjar.

“In winter you can’t keep your children warm, the plastic sheeting always rips and you have to spend your days shoveling snow off the roof.”

* Name changed to protect anonymity

MSF in Lebanon

MSF first started working in Lebanon in 1976, providing medical assistance in response to the outbreak of civil war.

It currently provides primary healthcare, including treatment for acute and chronic diseases, in Tripoli, the Bekaa Valley, Beirut and Sidon.

MSF also operates mother and child services in Arsal and the Shatila Palestinian refugee camp.

With the exception of the chronic services, MSF’s services are open to Syrian refugees, vulnerable Lebanese, Lebanese returnees from Syria, and Palestinian refugees from Syria.

MSF treats all Syrian refugees, irrespective of their registration status with UNCHR.

Find out more about MSF's work in Lebanon