Samoa's measles epidemic has claimed at least one more life in the past few days, with the death of a one-year-old twin, whose two-year-old brother died five days before her.
The Samoa Observer reports the grief stricken parents buried two of their three children together on Saturday, with the siblings showing clinical signs of measles and having not responded to hospital treatment.
Samoa's Ministry of Health has told RNZ Pacific that the current death toll from measles could not be confirmed, with a press release likely due Wednesday.
In response to news of the latest deaths, Auckland University's vaccine specialist Dr Helen Petousis-Harris told Jenny Meyer that Samoa's measles virus is now spreading like wildfire.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Jenny Meyer
