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Tshwane Mayor urges residents to avoid untested drinking water

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Tshwane’s Executive Mayor Cilliers Brink has urged people to refrain from buying untested drinking water. The death toll from the cholera outbreak stands at 24.

Brink says the City continues to provide safe drinking water to residents for free via its verified water tanker suppliers, and these tanker suppliers are not to sell water to residents.

“There are always people who exploit emergencies for their own benefit and what we have done, in addition to issuing this public warning, is to deploy Tshwane Metro Police. We also have emergency services on the ground and we have set up a line where folks can report any of these instances so that we can investigate it. What is essential is that if someone sees this they must take a photo of the number plate, because that is the only way we can trace who is doing that.’

Decline in cholera rate

In Hammanskraal, the number of patients presenting with mild to severe cholera symptoms has decreased as compared to last week, when the cholera outbreak was at its peak. This is according to the Gauteng Emergency Medical Services team stationed at the temporary clinic in Kanana Village in Hammanskraal.

They attribute this sudden decline to residents heeding messages that encourage them to exercise safe hygiene.

Gauteng Health Department Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba says 229 patients have been seen at the Jubilee District Hospital over the past two weeks, while the number of laboratory-confirmed cases of cholera seen at the hospital is 48.

VIDEO: Latest update on cholera outbreak in Hammanskraal:

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