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Cholera outbreak deaths continue to rise, with the number of fatalities in Hammanskraal climbing to 20.
The Department of Health in Gauteng said the number of patients that have been seen at the Jubilee District Hospital was at 179 on Wednesday afternoon.
The department said 18 patients have been transferred to Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital and Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Tshwane.
Meanwhile, the number of laboratory confirmed cases is standing at 29.
“To date, 20 people have passed on from the disease outbreak in Gauteng. The total number of patients admitted due to gastrointestinal infection is 78,” said the department.
The planned protests over the water issues in their cholera-hit area failed to materialise after residents had second thoughts.
Speaking to IOL, Hammanskraal residents who didn’t want to be named, said they decided to abstain from protesting as they understood that disrupting services might not end well.
“As it is people are dying and we don’t want to cause more damage. But it doesn’t mean we are not angry, we are angry but for now, we have to think about those who have been affected and not make matters worse for them because sometimes protests escalate things,” he said.
The project, which started in October 2019, has now allegedly been abandoned.
The failure of the project has contributed to the long-standing water issues in Hammanskraal which has now escalated to a cholera crisis, claiming 20 lives and leading to more than 70 people being hospitalised.
