Kisii county has set up a coronavirus isolation centre at the Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH).
County health executive Sarah Omache said on Thursday they will establish mini-isolation centres in all subcounty hospitals.
Omache said KTRH staff had been trained on how to handle any suspected cases of coronavirus.
Kisii county has also set up an emergency response committee to deal with the threats of COVID-19. The team will be co-chaired by Governor James Ongwae and county commissioner Stephen Kiharu.
Other members of the committee include executives of finance, public works, education, the chief officer of health, the county chief of staff and the county police commander, Omache said.
“The virus has become a threat to the entire world. We have put in place measures so that we are not caught off guard,” she said.
Kenya has no recorded coronavirus cases. Already 23 counties have set up emergency isolation centres.
All counties have received 5,000 coronavirus protective kits and 14 high-risk counties have received 10,000 kits from the national government.
High-risk counties are Nairobi, Kiambu, Machakos, Kakamega, Kisumu, Busia, Migori, Nakuru, Kajiado, Mombasa, Uasin Gishu, Kilifi, Wajir and Garissa.
Nairobi is among high-risk areas on grounds that it is the region’s biggest commercial hub with the biggest port of entry at JKIA.
Mombasa and Kilifi are seaport counties while Nakuru, Machakos and Uasin Gishu being transit counties.
Kiambu and Kakamega counties are considered high-risk because they are close Nairobi and Busia respectively.
So far, 121,061 cases of coronavirus have been reported worldwide, with at least 4,368 deaths recorded. Some 66,216 people have recovered.
An update released by the African Union earlier this week indicated that 105 cases had been reported in African countries.
According to the report, 11 countries have reported positive tests for the virus, the latest being the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The other countries are Egypt, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Togo and Tunisia.
Edited by A. Ndung'u
