Lentswe, Klerksdorp - The Dr Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality’s health services department cautioned the community about the probability of waterborne diseases alongside the Vaal River.
Environmental Health Practitioners (EHPs) led by the MMC for Municipal Health Services Councillor Wendy Makgathe visited Vaal River Boating Club, Orkney Vaal and Visarend Caravan Park situated along the Vaal River in Orkney on Friday April 26.
Central to these visits is an awareness campaign aimed at empowering communities with information related to illnesses caused by contaminated water, specifically where various water leisure activities like swimming, boating and fishing frequently occur. Cholera, a bacterial disease is usually spread through contaminated water sources and causes severe diarrhea and dehydration.
“Modern sewage and water treatment have virtually eliminated cholera in industrialized countries. But cholera still exists in Africa and other parts of the world like Southeast Asia and some Caribbean countries. The risk of a cholera epidemic is highest when poverty and other socio-economic factors like inadequate sanitation control are left unchecked,” the MMC said as she engaged with residential representatives.
The District Municipal Health Services department also advised and appealed to communities that while routine testing for Cholera and other waterborne diseases at numerous Vaal River points are done on a weekly basis, activities like river rafting, canoeing, fishing and swimming should be avoided in a bid to control a potential large-scale outbreak.
“We will continue to roll out this campaign in the coming weeks to have as much reach as possible to other communities. From here, focus areas will be farms and semi urban areas as these communities are prone to outbreak exposure because of their known use of water from streams and rivers as a source of recreation, religious and other household activities.”
