Cholera outbreak hits Kaduna boarding school, 1 died, 42 hospitalised

Some of the affected girls of GGSS Kawo, Kaduna conveyed to the hospital on Monday

The Kaduna State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Alh Ja’afaru Sani has confirmed that one girl has died as a result of cholera outbreak at Government Girls Secondary School, Kawo, in Kaduna state.

This was even as 42 students have been hospitalised at General Hospital, Kawo Kaduna.

Findings revealed that officials of Red Cross have stormed the college as well as other emergency organizations to put the situation under control.

A source who pleaded for anonymity remarked that 42 students were evacuated from the school as a result of having diarrhoea and vomiting.

As at the time of filing the report, the health workers have been deployed to the school to manage the situation.

The officials of State’s Ministry of Health and Principal of the school who are on ground declined to comment on the issue.

But, Deputy Director, Disease Control Centre, Ibrahim Suleiman disclosed that he could only confirm 39 who have been evacuated from their hostels to the hospital.

According to him, “we have 39 cases of admission due to diarrhoea and vomit. We are yet to confirm the real cause but there is a lot of contamination around the water source the students are using which may be a serious contributory factor.

“Apart from these 39 students on admission, we are also investigating another 89 cases apart from diarrhoea and vomiting.”

A parent simply identified as Ibrahim confirmed that the well, which is the only water source for the students was littered with excreta because the overhead tank in the school was not working thereby making it difficult for the students to use the toilet facility in the school.

“My daughter was affected. The school hygiene is too poor. There are excreta around the well where these children are getting water from”, he added.

This was coming even when the state government was trying to revamp educational sector of the state with a concentration on boarding schools across the state aiming at providing qualitative education for Kaduna children.