SULAIMANIYA, Iraq, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Health officials have traced the source of an outbreak of cholera in Iraq's northern Sulaimaniya province to a water treatment plant, a regional health minister said on Thursday.

Zairyan Othman, health minister for Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, has warned of a catastrophe unless the outbreak is quickly contained. There are nearly 4,000 suspected cases in Sulaimaniya and the neighbouring province of Kirkuk.

Othman told Reuters on Thursday samples taken from the water treatment plant showed the presence of the bacterium that causes cholera, an acute intestinal infection that is spread through contaminated food and water.

"This is the main reason for cholera spreading so quickly in Sulaimaniya," Othman said.

He said the plant, which serves the whole of Sulaimaniya, was to be shut for 24 hours to clean its filters. Most Sulaimaniya residents rely on bottled water or wells.

Othman also blamed the outbreak on well-water that had not been properly chlorinated. He said eight people had died in the outbreak, seven in Sulaimaniya and one in Kirkuk.

The number of confirmed infections in Sulaimaniya had more than doubled to 77 while Kirkuk had 47 confirmed infections, he said. Four planes have arrived from Baghdad with emergency medical supplies.

In Geneva, Claire Lisa Chaignat, head of the WHO's task force on cholera control, said the organisation was aware of 35 laboratory-confirmed cases in Kirkuk and an unknown number of cases in Sulaimaniya. (Additional reporting by Laura MacInnis in Geneva)

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