Five people in Kazo district are hospitalized after consuming meat suspected to be contaminated with anthrax.
Dr Andrew Oguta, the team leader District Anthrax
Task Committee said during a sensitization meeting at the town council headquarters on
Thursday that five people had been put under quarantine and samples sent to the
Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe.
He said that sensitization meetings conducted by Health workers
from Buremba Health Centre III are being conducted to create awareness about the
disease in the district and also curtail its spread. He said that
all five cases were suspected of slaughtering a cow that had died in Buremba Town Council.
//Cue in: “We
had registered…
Cue out:
…ezifunde zebayita kidumure.”//
Tayebwa Benezeri, the Chairperson of Rushango Cell I says that the health
workers who first appeared to handle the cases went into hiding and directed
the relatives of the sick to take them to the health facility.
//Cue in: “aha
bwokuba tweine…
Cue out:
…kokureeba ngu bakiira.”//
Kazo
district joins other districts of Bushenyi, Sheema, and Ibanda in the Ankole
region which have in the past months struggled to contain the disease.
Anthrax is
most common in wild and domestic herbivores, such as cattle, sheep, goats,
camels, and antelopes.
Animals with anthrax may die quickly and may have a
high fever or blood around their nose, mouth, and anus just before death, while
in humans those infected with anthrax through exposure to tissue from infected
animals, contaminated animal products, or directly present anthracis spores.
