Origin of the cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal still unknown

May 31, 2023 56

Seven new cholera cases have been confirmed in Tshwane, taking the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 99.

Kanana in Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria, has been hardest-hit.

Health Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, confirmed this earlier on Wednesday at a media briefing on the department’s efforts and interventions in response to the cholera outbreak.

The disease has so far claimed 23 lives in Tshwane and one in the Free State.

The Department says it has seen a drop in the number of patients admitted to hospitals for the water-borne disease.

As a prevention measure, Phaahla says, they have created wards that specifically cater for cholera patients at Jubilee Hospital in Hammanskraal.

They have also appointed a gastroenterologist and a field hospital in Kanana.

Additional staff has also been deployed, while humanitarian medics from the Doctors Without Borders are also assisting.

Phaahla says this year’s first cholera cases in the country can be traced to the two sisters from Diepsloot.

They had traveled to Malawi earlier this year for a funeral and were diagnosed with the illness upon their return to South Africa.

The source of the outbreak in Hammanskraal is, however, yet to be identified.

Earlier this week, MEC for health in Limpopo, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, said they were working around the clock to test their water after a cholera case was reported in the province.

Written by: Nokwazi Qumbisa

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