The Moyale Public Health Officer (PHO), Roba Golica has cautioned area residents to be on high alert after one person from Butiye area died at the Moyale sub-county hospital on Wednesday morning while six others are admitted presenting symptoms suspected to be Cholera.
Roba while speaking to KNA in his office said the patients were admitted over the last three days with diarrhea and vomiting, and are yet to be discharged until their condition stabilises.
The deceased had been admitted at the Moyale Level Four Hospital.
“We have collected specimen from the patients who are still in an isolation room at the Moyale Level Four hospital and a surveillance team from the department of public health has been dispatched to monitor eating places and ensure operators observe hygiene,” Roba said.
The medic said public health officials are observing hygiene , treating drinking water with chlorine tablets and disinfecting the rooms which were being used by the patients at their homes before they were admitted in hospital to make sure that there will be no new infections.
He said his department was sensitising the residents on enhancing hygiene through washing of hands after visiting toilets and boiling drinking water.
“If we establish that the symptoms are cholera-related we will ban eating in any public event such as weddings and funerals, but as of now we have a team which will be going round supervising the preparation of food in such gatherings,” the PHO said.
Roba said that hawking of food was illegal because the quality of hygiene is not guaranteed, adding that they will crackdown from tomorrow on food hawkers in the area to contain the spread of the disease.
By Gatana Muchira
