11 admitted following suspected anthrax in Bomet

Public health officers from Bomet County are on high alert following suspected cases of anthrax at Emityot ‘B’ village in Sotik.

Already, 11 cases have been reported in the area with the particular individuals said to have come into contact with the carcasses having been referred to Kapkatet and Longisa hospitals in Kericho and Bomet respectively.

Three of the victims had earlier been referred to Kapkatet while the other eight were rushed to Longisa on Sunday morning.

Majority of those found to have developed signs of the disease are adults and children from one extended family.

Those admitted at the two health facilities had pale wounds on their hands, heads and knees.

Area assistant chief Peter Sawe told the Star that the victims may have buried their dead animals without exercising caution when handling it.

“Those with noticeable signs came into contact with the dead animals either while slaughtering or handling them to bury hence the spread of the disease,” said the administrator.

In the last week, he stated, there have been four cases of animals dying with the cause yet to be established.

The county director of veterinary services Wilson Serem could not immediately confirm if the cases were those exhibited by anthrax but noted samples from the animals that died in the area have since been taken to government laboratories for analysis.

“We are not going to rule out the disease… with the current rainy season, there are many diseases that erupt and so we are almost certain it is anthrax,” he noted.

Serem said, however, they have put in place necessary measures to contain the situation, calling on the public to stay away from dead animals and report to authorities any case of deaths of animals in their areas before burying.

“Our people should not hurriedly bury dead animals, they should report to us so that we can ascertain the cause with a view arresting the situation before spreading to humans,” said the officer.

He also pointed out that the county had enough vaccines and that they had mobilised the veterinary officers to begin vaccinating animals in the area against the disease.

“We had planned the exercise for next week. In fact, our veterinary officers from the area have mobilised the residents and are now on standby for the mass exercise,” he stated.