(http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130115-cuba-cholera-hmed-3p.photoblog600.jpg)AFP - Getty ImagesMiriam Rodriguez shows a picture of her late son Ubaldo Pino -- who died of cholera on Jan. 6 -- on Jan. 15, 2013 in Havana. The official newspaper Granma announced Tuesday a cholera outbreak has allegedly sickened 51 people in Havana. By Marc Frank, ReutersCuban authorities are scrambling to contain a cholera outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in Havana, the capital city of 2.2 million residents and a popular tourism destination.
In a brief communiqué issued on Tuesday, the Health Ministry said the outbreak was first detected on Jan. 6, and was being contained.
"Fifty-one cases have been confirmed to date," the statement read, without mentioning fatalities.
Follow @NBCNewsWorld (https://twitter.com/NBCNewsWorld)"Due to the measures adopted, transmission is in the phase of extinction," it said.
But in off-the-record discussions with a ministry official and doctor directly involved in fighting the outbreak, a different picture emerged with hundreds of suspected cases.
NBCNews