Reports on the severity of the Cuban cholera outbreak are conflicting. Some say as few as 85 have been infected with cholera; the Miami Herald interviewed an apparent dissident, living in the province where the outbreak has taken place, who stated that 1,000 have fallen ill. At least three people have been confirmed to be dead, though the number could be as high as 15.

Some outlets are reporting that some cholera cases have appeared in Havana, indicating a spread from the southeastern town of Manzanillo. A few unconfirmed cases have also appeared in Caimanera, the town beside the United States’ controversial Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

Most of the cases have been in the southeastern province of Granma. There is no travel quarantine for the area and, according to the Associated Press, there is no sense of chaos. Loudspeakers on the streets remind residents about the importance of good hygiene and that the sale of oysters has been suspended. Residents of Havana are also placing particular importance on good hygiene.

Cuba’s Public Health Ministry reports that this is the first cholera outbreak since the country’s revolution in 1959. MSNBC is reporting that the cholera has been caused by contaminated water wells. Officials have blamed the recent severe rains and high temperatures, which forced the closure and chlorination of some area water wells. It remains unclear as to what the source of the cholera is, however.

The Public Health Ministry has issued a statement, announcing that Manzanillo has been the hardest hit by the epidemic, but it appears that it is slowing. The government has also confirmed the deaths of three people, with ages ranging from 66 to 95. The ministry insisted that it had adequate resources to properly assist all medical institutions.

Some area hospitals are quarantining certain patients. At particular risk are the elderly, infirm, and pregnant women.

Doctors have mobilized and are currently going door to door to look for people who were running fevers, and reminding people about preventative measures like the use of chlorine drops to disinfect drinking water.

Cuba’s doctors were instrumental in helping with Haiti’s own deadly cholera epidemic in the weeks after the 2010 earthquake. The cholera epidemic in Haiti killed 7,400 people.

Cholera is a bacterial infection in the small intestine that causes watery diarrhea. Sufferers from the disease can die from dehydration.