The Gauteng Health Department has urged residents to rely on its verified social media platforms for information. This after a social media account urged residents not to drink tap water to avoid contracting cholera.
The department says it has nothing to do with the account.
Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba says out of five cases in Gauteng, one patient died recently.
“The province has five confirmed cholera cases. Sadly, the fifth case resulted in the death of a patient who had earlier presented with profuse watery diarrhoea and was admitted at Tambo Memorial Hospital where his results confirmed positive. The first three people who tested positive for cholera have since fully recovered while the fourth person is recovering well at home.”
NB: The information shared by this account is inaccurate. There’s no scientific evidence or official communication that people shouldn’t drink tap water which remains safe for drinking. Continue to practice proper hand hygiene & not to drink water from contaminated sources. https://t.co/WVa3fzDX1e pic.twitter.com/NUKbkV8m2U
— Gauteng Health (@GautengHealth) February 27, 2023
No links to water contamination
Meanwhile, Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla said at the weekend that there hasn’t been any indication of contamination in water reservoirs following the first death linked to recent cases of Cholera detected in the country.
“The threat will always be there but we are still comfortable at this stage that it’s been isolated cases. So that is why we say our environmental health practitioners, together with various city authorities, will always be alert, monitoring, especially testing water reservoirs and at this stage, we haven’t had any indication of any water reservoirs which have been affected.”
