Two women at a hostel in Durban have died, allegedly of COVID-19 related complications. The body of one of the women was found by her roommates at the weekend. The other victim experienced breathing problems and was taken to Addington Hospital. She died a day later.
Residents are now calling for the municipality and provincial Department of Health to conduct mass testing at the hostel.
Residents of the Thokoza women’s hostel in Durban say they are living in fear, not knowing whether they have been infected with the coronavirus.
One of the residents, Nelly Bhengu, who is also a community healthcare worker, says they were also not immediately assisted at one of the Durban COVID-19 hospitals.
“I am a community healthcare worker working at Thokoza hostel. I was called when one resident was seriously ill. When I asked her what is wrong, she said she has tested for COVID-19 and she was positive. Someone from a municipal clinic phoned her and told her they will be picking her up. That never happened until late at night. We had to hire a car to take her to Addington Hospital. Upon our arrival, they told us they won’t admit her since her COVID-19 tests were done by a municipal clinic. After a lengthy debate, I had to ask for the names of the people who were refusing to admit the patient. At that time, the patient was asthmatic. I told them I was going to report them. They eventually admitted her. The following day we got a call that she died.”
Residents of the Hostel are calling for urgent COVID-19 testing:
Mass testing
Bhengu says she has tested positive for the coronavirus as well. She says residents are calling on the government to do mass testing and also disinfect their hostel.
“Other residents need to be tested as well, but now the problem is if they do not have symptoms they won’t be tested. I did my COVID-19 test last Friday at Addington Hospital and today ,the results came back positive. We appeal to the government to intervene at Thokoza hostel and disinfect the entire hostel and also to test all the residents. We are living together and sharing rooms and bathrooms. We are all scared at the moment.”
Social distancing
Social distancing is nearly impossible at the hostels as residents are sharing rooms and communal areas. A spokesperson for the hostel dwellers association Ubunye Bammahhostela, Mthembiseni Thusi, says the government needs to urgently intervene.
“What is happening at Thokoza, it is the same thing that we did mention at the beginning of lockdown, saying as hostel residents we are going to face a big problem due to overcrowding. What we are saying is that the situation at Thokoza is going to happen at all hostels. We asked the municipality or health department to shut down the hostel and sanitise it rather than just leave it like that because it is very sad that at Thokoza people are dying like flies which is not acceptable.”
The eThekwini Municipality says they had initially conducted a deep cleaning of all their hostels.
Municipal Spokesperson, Msawakhe Mayisela, says they will continue to disinfect the hostels should the need arise.
“(I cannot) confirm nor deny that there is a positive case at Thokoza hostel because it is not our prerogative to do so. They are assuring residents that they will continue to deep clean the hostels.”
The Provincial Health Department was contacted about the incident but had not responded at the time of publication.
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