Authorities are investigating a spike in reported cases of Typhoid Fever in several neighbourhoods around Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa (SA).
Typhoid is an infectious bacterial fever with an eruption of red spots on the chest and abdomen, which is often accompanied by severe intestinal irritation.
According to Mayor Doctor Nasiphi Moya, extensive tests of the city’s water supply have so far found no direct link between the outbreak and tap water contamination.
The city has since partnered with the national health and water-sanitation agencies to trace the source, pledging to continuously monitor the water network.
“We can confirm that, based on the report, there are cases which have been detected in the past few months. It is two per week around the City of Tshwane, especially around the area of Hammanskraal and Bongo’s Creek.
The National Institute For Communicable Diseases, the National Department of Health and the provincial Department of Health teams are working with the local authorities; they are busy with contact tracing and case finding together with surveillance,” says Health Department Spokesperson Foster Mohale.”
–SABC–
