Aston Lukoye
A week after being shuttered indefinitely due to the deaths of two students from suspected food and water contamination, Mukumu Girls High School in Kakamega County has lost a third student.
The student died on Tuesday, April 11 while at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) while undergoing treatment at the Kakamega County Hospital.
Speaking to Nation Africa, Kakamega County Health executive Bernard Wesonga revealed that four girls remain hospitalized.
The outbreak has since seen over 124 students hospitalized at the Kakamega County General Hospital following reports that more than 500 students were infected by the bacteria.
On Wednesday, April 5, the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) reported that the students had both gastroenteritis and an amoeba infection. Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Susan Nakhumicha however reported that one of the students who had been admitted to the Kakamega Referral Hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU) had improved and been transferred to the general ward.
“We have a total of 108 cases of gastroenteritis, a stomach disease which has resulted in two deaths. A majority were managed as outpatients with 40 admitted,” she stated.
She revealed that some students were infected with amebiasis and salmonella typhi (a parasitic infection of the intestines that causes stomach pain and diarrhoea).
Despite this, she claimed that a multi-agency team had already been put in place to supervise the renovation of the school’s water infrastructure, kitchen, dining area, and grain stores as well as the expansion of the boarding area in order to prevent the recurrence of water-borne illnesses.
She also assured that the team will address the evident water contamination menace at the school as the government continued with laboratoty investigations through organizations like the Government Chemist and the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI).
“We will be working with the county governments to assess facilities on how they handle food and verify that the cooks are certified by the Ministry of Health,” the CS pointed out.
The Health CS who was accompanied by Education Principal Secretary (PS) Belio Kipsang’ as they visited the school identified five potential causes of the disease breakout.
According to School Principal Fridah Ndolo, the school got its water from a stream and it was stored in an overhead tank. Ndolo also said that the main tank is cleaned every three months. An official also backed her up by noting that the water sampled from the stream may at times be resistant to the chlorination process.
The team however was puzzled by the effectiveness of the chlorination process, and how often the tank was cleaned.
Kipsang, on the other hand, advised that the Ministry of Water work with the Ministry of Education to drill boreholes to ensure a constant supply of clean water.
