HAVANA: Cuba is acknowledging 51 new cases of cholera in the capital, months after declaring the illness eradicated.

It says nobody has died from cholera in Havana. But the family of at least one man has told The Associated Press he died of cholera earlier this month. The government has declined repeated requests for comment, and has not made any experts available to talk about the cholera situation.

Cuba's Public Health Ministry said Tuesday that there has been "an increase in water-borne diarrhetic diseases" since January 6, first in the capital's Cerro neighborhood and then elsewhere. The ministry says preventive measures have put transmission "on the way to extinction," while calling on the population to be more vigilant about washing hands, purifying water and properly cleaning vegetables and other foods.