A 16-year-old boy from Luveve suburb in Bulawayo who died after reportedly drinking contaminated tap water succumbed to Acute Gastroenteritis due to Typhoid, a post-mortem report has shown.
The deceased, identified as Franklin Thabiso Nyoni was admitted to Mpilo Central Hospital on June 8, and died two days later.
He became the fifth person from the suburb to die after consuming suspected contaminated tap water.
Gastroenteritis is an intestinal infection marked by diarrhoea, cramps, vomiting, nausea. It can also be spread through contaminated food or water.
A relative of the deceased, Xolani Phiri, told CITE that her cousin fell sick after drinking tap water.
“We all had diarrhoea at home but my cousin was in a worse state, he complained of back cramps, and loss of appetite,” she said.
Residents in the suburb have been up in arms with the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) over the alleged poor quality water coming out of the taps.
The local authority, in a statement, said the water samples collected from “municipal sampling points in the same areas and the water quality was satisfactory”.
However, samples collected from containers in the affected households were “unsatisfactory indicating bacterial presence”.
Residents associations in Bulawayo have called on the government and the local authority to urgently trace the source of contamination to avert a serious health crisis.
