Bulawayo has been hit by another diarrhoea outbreak after 157 cases were reported in Tshabalala suburb.
In a bid to contain the situation, the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) said it had removed the suburb from its water-shedding schedule.
The city is currently under a weekly 72-hour water-shedding regime.
In a statement, the city’s Town Clerk Christopher Dube said the local authority is on the ground assessing the situation.
“The City of Bulawayo received a report from a Tshabalala Extension resident on the 28th of November 2021 of a possible diarrhoeal outbreak and that some residents had started experiencing diarrhoea and vomiting,” said Dube.
“Following the report, a team from the City of Bulawayo was sent to investigate on the 29th of November 2021. The team started off by checking the records at Tshabalala clinic, and the records showed that the number of diarrhoea cases had exceeded the thresholds thus confirming the outbreak.”
Dube added that on November 30, teams were sent to the suburb to identify more people who had been affected and were referred for treatment at Tshabalala Clinic.
“At the Clinic, more nurses were sent from other centers to beef up staffing. A tent has been pitched to accommodate more patients. A medical doctor is also stationed at the Clinic to assist. As at 30 November 2021, a total of 157 patients had been attended to. All age groups seemed to be affected,” said Dube.
The diarrhoea outbreak in the city has been attributed to the water shortages being experienced in the city.
Last year, at least 13 Luveve residents died with over 1 500 related ailments reported.
There was also an outbreak in Mzilikazi and Emgwanwini suburbs.
