Free State records a second death of CholeraParys

The Free State Department of Health has confirmed that a second person has died of Cholera in the Free State province. The patient was from Parys.

Mondli Mvambi, spokesperson for the department on Thursday 8 June said the 42 year old female patient was admitted at the Boitumelo Hospital in Kroonstad where she died.

The province on 24 May confirmed it’s first death caused by Cholera when a 33 year old female from Vredefort (a neighbour town of Parys) passed away after being admitted at the Parys Hospital. Both Parys and Vredefort forms part of the Ngwathe Local Municipality.

The province to date recorded 10 confirmed cases of Cholera (including the two patients who died). Of the 10 patients, 7 were from Vredefort and 3 from Parys.

Cholera cases thus far had been reported in the Gauteng, Free State,  Mpumalanga and Northwest provinces.

President Cyril Ramaphosa during a visit to Hammanskraal north of Pretoria, today said that it cost the death of several people before the government had realised that the water crisis in Hammanskraal going on for years now, has to be resolved urgently. In Gauteng 29 people, mostly from Hammanskraal, died of Cholera.

President Ramaphosa said he was shocked by the condition of the Rooiwal Water purification plant at Hammanskraal, and added that it is time that the country starts looking after it’s infrastructure.

• The Free State Department of Health in it’s statement once again called on all people to continue washing their hands and boiling water before they can consume it.
• Should you experience  symptoms of Diarrhoea, please go to the nearest health facility to get help as a matter or urgency, the department said.
• The Department also urged the public to only make use of reliable sources for verified information on causes of death that are confirmed by laboratory tests, and not opinions that are not scientifically supported by facts.