Musina cholera toll up to 123

Last updated: Friday, November 21, 2008 Print

The number of cholera cases has risen to 123 in the Limpopo border town of Musina, the Department of Health said on Friday.

"Twenty-two cases have been reported since last night, bringing the number to 123 since Saturday," said department spokesman Phuti Seloba. "Those who are infected are from Zimbabwe, with the exception of one South African... 18 people have been hospitalised," he said. On Thursday, a Zimbabwean man died, making it the third fatality from the illness. The other two died at the weekend.

Seloba said two new rehydration centres, in addition to the existing one, would also be set up so that people would not have to travel long distances to get treatment. This would include one at the Beitbridge border.

"We are also handing out pamphlets in order to educate people on cholera... the pamphlets touch on hygiene issues and what needs to be done if anyone has the symptoms."

Numbers expected to rise
On Wednesday, a truck driver who arrived in Durban from Zimbabwe at the weekend was diagnosed with cholera. Provincial health spokesman Leon Mbangwa said the man had been placed in an isolation ward in Durban's Addington Hospital.

Earlier this week, French news agency Agence France Presse reported that there had been 73 cholera deaths in Zimbabwe in the latest outbreak, which was caused by the breakdown of sanitation in the country. AFP reported that, according to Doctors Without Borders, up to 1.4 million people in Zimbabwe were at risk of contracting the water-borne disease.

Seloba said that the number of cases was expected to rise by Saturday as more people would go to rehydration centres for treatment. – (Sapa, November 2008)