South Africa grapples with cholera outbreak.

Friday, June 2, 2023 14:33 (GMT+7)

(CPV) – In an effort to contain and control the spread of cholera in the town of Hammanskraal, near South Africa's capital Pretoria, the Gauteng Provincial Health Department has established a field hospital in the town of Kanana in the North West province to cope with the increasing number of infections.

Accordingly, the Gauteng Health Department set up temporary tents to treat people with symptoms of dehydration, vomiting, and diarrhea. Patients received intravenous or oral fluids upon arrival. Critically ill patients were transferred to hospitals in Tshwane for further care and hospitalization.

The latest figures from the Gauteng Health Department show that 229 people are currently being treated in hospitals for cholera and at least 23 have died.

Authorities in Gauteng province – home to the administrative capital Pretoria and Johannesburg, South Africa's largest city – are currently implementing a series of systematic response measures, including improving access to drinking water for residents.

Accordingly, the drinking water tankers will supply water to residents in the Hammanskraal area until a mobile water treatment plant can be installed in March of next year.

Health officials also urged people to avoid eating and coming into contact with food, water, and surfaces that are contaminated or suspected of being contaminated with cholera-causing bacteria, and to wash their hands thoroughly with soap before handling food or after using bathrooms and toilets.

South Africa sets up field hospital to deal with cholera outbreak near capital Pretoria ( Video "Africa news")

In recent days, cholera has spread rapidly in the Hammanskraal region (Gauteng province). Cholera is an acute infectious disease caused by the Vibrio cholerae bacterium, transmitted through the digestive tract via contaminated food and water. The disease can be fatal within hours if left untreated.

South Africa is the latest country to experience a cholera outbreak following fatalities in neighboring Zimbabwe and Malawi earlier this year. In February 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that cholera cases in Africa were increasing exponentially amid a global epidemic. At least 12 African countries have reported cholera outbreaks this year.

In neighboring Zimbabwe, health officials have confirmed nine deaths from cholera and more than 1,400 suspected cases since February 2023. Meanwhile, Malawian officials said earlier this year that the country had recorded more than 1,000 deaths in a widespread outbreak that began in March 2022. The WHO said this was the worst cholera outbreak in Malawi in 20 years, with more than 36,000 cases reported.

PG (according to Africa news, Aljazeera, AFP)

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