Those first infected catch the disease from the rivers surrounding Manhattan. Due to the fact that the sanitation systems are not closed, cholera from sick people is able to enter the water. Neighborhoods built on land reclaimed from wetlands are especially hit hard, such as Five Points, where the majority of residents are Black and/or living in poverty. At one hospital, half of all patients admitted die of cholera. Doctors and policy makers refer to cholera as the "Oriental cholera," blaming its initial spread on people from Asia.