Maputo  - At least 15 people died from cholera in a prison cell in the northern Mozambican province of Nampula after escaping death from asphyxiation in an overcrowded jail cell last month, local media reported Thursday.

The daily paper Noticias citing Carlos Amade, the administrator of Angoche district, said the cholera spread due to the new cell's overcrowding and lack of basic sanitation.

The deceased were part of a group of inmates transferred from Mongincual district jail after the death of 13 prisoners from asphyxiation last month.

Angoche's detention facility currently hosts 120 inmates, well above its capacity of 30 people. The single source of water was a well which only was disinfected after the first cholera deaths.

The deceased were buried in a common grave without being reclaimed by family members. dpa