Focus shifts to hygiene as Hammanskraal cholera death toll climbs to 17

On Wednesday, the Gauteng Health Department confirmed the death toll has risen to 17, while the number of patients that have been seen at the Jubilee District Hospital stood at 165 – including the 18 patients who were transferred to other health facilities in Tshwane.

According to the department, there were 29 laboratory-confirmed cases of cholera to date, and 67 patients have been admitted due to gastrointestinal infection.

While contaminated water is the obvious suspect because of the area’s history with contaminated water supply, experts have warned the bacterial disease can also be spread through contaminated food and surfaces.

Hammanskraal residents have been urged to practice good hygiene, like hand washing, to curb the spread of the disease.

“We advise the public to report to their nearest health facilities when they present with diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and dehydration symptoms, so they can receive medical treatment.

“We further reiterate the call for the public to avoid consuming known or suspected contaminated food and water,” said the department’s spokesperson Motalatale Modiba.

Meanwhile, humanitarian group Gift of the Givers’ Cliffort Mabe says they’ll be distributing hygiene packs in affected communities.  

“The hygiene packs will have your Domestos, bleach to make sure that the surface is clean. As well as sanitisers, lotions, and bathing soaps for washing hands.”

The Gauteng Health Department says it intensify its awareness campaign on the disease and safe hygiene practices.

TANKERS NOT ‘FOOLPROOF’ SOLUTION TO HAMMANSKRAAL WATER WOES

While the probe into the source of the deadly cholera outbreak continues Kamogelo Stock, who suspects the water tankers that deliver drinking water to communities, says they were never told how to decontaminate water at home.

“Regarding the truck water, they never told us anything about whether to boil the water, they just told us that the tap water is bad, and this truck water is good,” she says.

READ: Hammanskraal family adamant deceased gran didn’t drink tap water

Municipal infrastructure expert and lecturer at the University of Cape Town Gundo Maswime says monitoring the safety of tank water and the safety compliance by service providers is not an easy task.

“The big challenge with tankers is that you appoint a service provider or the city uses its own fleet to deliver water to the communities. The question is, where does that tanker get its water from?  Because you might find that when the pressure is very high, they may still get somewhere in a part of Hammanskraal where there is water. So, it’s not always a solution.”

READ: Tshwane mayor: No cholera in city’s water supply

Maswime says to avoid the possibility of water-borne illnesses, high-risk communities such as those in Hammanskraal would have to be educated and warned to purify the tanker water too.

“You can’t say the tanker will solve the problem. Either way, you still need to boil the water and have it distilled in one way or another before it's used. It’s not a solution, it’s also a very expensive way of addressing the problem.”

In a statement released by the City of Tshwane earlier this week, it said would run a week-long program where environmental health practitioners would also conduct tests on all fire hydrants and inspect the cleanliness of water tankers supplying Hammanskraal and the surrounding areas.

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