Ulhasnagar Municipal Commissioner Ramnath Sonawane was admitted to P D Hinduja Hospital, Mahim, with leptospirosis on Saturday.
‘‘I am well and my doctors inform me that I am out of danger as the disease was detected at an early stage,’’ Sonwane said.
Doctors believe he caught the virus while heading flood-relief efforts in his city, which surprisingly saw only four deaths—the lowest toll—in the outbreak of water-borne diseases that followed July 26.
While 204 Mumbaiites and Thaneites have died from suspected leptospirosis, dengue and malaria since the deluge, the toll in Kalyan has touched 42.
And the main reason Ulhasnagar, traditionally known for its heaps of garbage and lack of sanitation, managed to keep the death toll so low is the timely decisions made by the administration immediately after the deluge.
Fifty-five km from Mumbai, Ulhasnagar is a mere 13 sq km—with a population of 6 lakh—surrounded by a network of rivers, rivulets and nullahs.
Realising the danger of an outbreak, the Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (UMC) employed contractors and private labour as early as July 28 and began clearing the streets of garbage.
The same day, the civic body held a meeting with Dr Mahendra Rochlani, president of the Ulhasnagar Medical Association. ‘‘Floods are always followed by epidemics and I wanted the government health machinery to be prepared for the extra load,’’ said Sonawane.
Enlisting the help of 25 general practitioners in flood-affected areas across Ulhasnagar and two mobile dispensaries, the UMC ensured that free medical help was available to all.
‘‘More than 5,000 people were treated free as part of the civic body’s campaign. This turned out to be very crucial in keeping a check on the spread of water-borne diseases,’’ said Ulhasnagar Medical Association Vice-President Dr Prakash Nathani.
‘‘A team of paramedics also went around, dispensing medicines to those with symptoms of water-borne diseases,’’ said Sonawane.
The door-to-door survey, launched on July 29, is an ongoing effort, with 50 teams of multi-purpose workers even revisiting families to recheck their medical condition.