Tana River County has stepped up their campaigns to stop the spread of cholera outbreak.[Photo/nation.co.ke]
Health officials in Garissa and neighbouring Madogo division of Tana River County have stepped up their campaigns to stop the spread of cholera outbreak that has claimed 8 lives.
In a press briefing, health chief officer Mohamed Farah said over 129 people have been diagnosed and treated for cholera at an isolation unit at the Garissa county referral hospital after the highly contagious disease was detected two weeks ago.
Farah said the department is working closely with health officials from neighbouring Tana County where the disease is suspected to have ‘originated’.
“Over 90 percent of all the cases that we have received far at the Garissa county referral hospital isolation unit are from the neighbouring Tana river. We suspect some of these residents are using contaminated water,” Farah said.
He said that among the measures the department had undertaken include treatment of water sources used by the residents in the affected areas including Tana River County where they are supporting community health workers.
A spot check by reporters revealed that health workers had been deployed at the Tana Bridge entry and exit to and from Garissa town to disinfect residents crossing over and commercial vehicles from Madogo area to prevent further spread of the disease.
Pressmen further established that eatery joints, butcheries and all those cooking and selling in the open air have also been ordered to close down.
Mohamed said that the disease could have been spread by casual workers from Madogo who steam into the town on a daily basis to eke for a living.
He advised the residents to maintain high standards of hygiene despite a reduction in the number of cases.
The chief officer ruled out the possibility that last year’s cholera outbreak could have originated from the vast Dadaab refugee camps late last year despite a student from Garissa high school who hails from Hagadera refugee camp having been diagnosed with the disease last week.
He advised the residents to immediately take anyone with symptoms of watery diarrhea, headache, weak joints to isolation centers that have been set up in Sankuri, Fafi, Mbalambala, Madogo health center and the referral hospital which are equipped to handle the disease.
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