Kehinde Fajobi
A cholera outbreak has left two people dead and 18 hospitalised in the Kwalmiya community of Kanam District, Plateau State, according to Dr. Cletus Shurkuk, the state Commissioner for Health.
Shurkuk told Vanguard in Jos, “Yes, we woke up this week to the report of a suspected case of cholera in the Kwalmiya community, Kanam District, Kanam local government area, and we have also mobilised resources to the community. From the assessment, we have a total of 20 people that were affected.”
Out of the 20 affected, Shurkuk reported, two succumbed to the illness.
“The remaining 18 were treated, and 16 were discharged, while two are still being treated. Hopefully, they will be discharged by today or tomorrow,” he said.
Shurkuk assured that health teams, along with primary healthcare staff, are on the ground with the necessary medications.
The commissioner urged Plateau State residents to stay vigilant, noting that “there is an outbreak of cholera in the Kwalmiya community of Kanam local government.”
He advised citizens to practise hygiene precautions: “Any water they use should be well treated; if they don’t have access to clean water, they should ensure that their water is boiled before use. They should ensure that they don’t engage in open defecation and that any fruits they want to eat are properly washed.”
He also highlighted the importance of timely reporting: “If there is any community that has noticed any suspected case, they should ensure that the information is adequately passed to the appropriate authority because the patients that we lost, we didn’t get the information in time, but since we got the information, we have not lost any patients.”
To address water issues in Kwalmiya, where a single well serves as the only drinking water source, Shurkuk stated that his ministry is coordinating with the state Ministry of Water Resources.
He also urged the local government to repair the area’s two non-functioning boreholes to ensure access to cleaner water sources.