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BEIRA, Mozambique — Cholera cases among cyclone survivors in Mozambique have jumped to 271, authorities said, a figure that nearly doubled from the previous day.

The Portuguese news agency Lusa cited national health director Ussein Isse, who declared the outbreak of the acute diarrheal disease on Wednesday with just five cases.

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So far no cholera deaths have been confirmed, the report said. Another Lusa report said the death toll in central Mozambique from the cyclone that hit on March 14 had inched up to 501. Authorities have warned the toll is highly preliminary as flood waters recede and reveal more bodies.

The cholera cases have been discovered in the port city of Beira, whose half-million residents and especially those in crowded, poor neighbourhoods are at particular risk.

Children and other patients curled up on bare beds at a treatment centre in Beira on Saturday, some with anxious parents by their side. They had intravenous drips to help replace fluids.