At least 28 dead in typhoid, malaria outbreaks

At least 28 people have died and 233 others are in hospital following a typhoid and malaria outbreak in Embu district, Central province. Of the dead, nine were inmates at a local prison. News organisations reported on Tuesday that the hardest hit areas included Embu town, Manyatta and Runyenjes. Cases have also been reported in the neighbouring districts of Mbeere, Kirinyaga and Meru South. Of the admitted patients, 169 have malaria and 64 are suffering from typhoid, the ‘Daily Nation’ reported. Most of the victims have been admitted to the Embu Provincial general hospital.

Journalists, who visited the provincial hospital, said that patients were sharing beds in the wards, and others were forced to sleep on the floor. The hospital’s superintendent, Masasabi Wekesa, put the admission rate at three people daily, a figure which was disputed by taxi drivers who operate around the hospital. According to them, the number could be as high as 10 a day.

On Friday, the Ministry of Health had issued a warning of an outbreak of malaria and typhoid in some areas due to heavy rains in parts of the country.