• More than 1,000 people have died of the new coronavirus, overwhelmingly in China.
• A number of other countries have reported cases and deaths. Two patients being monitored in Kenya, no confirmed cases in Kenya.
Image: COURTESY
A sickly looking Chinese national caused a coronavirus panic in Naivasha on Monday evening when he was spotted in a popular hotel eatery around the lake.
Residents fled from the hotel near Kamere estate as the Chinese national ordered food at the restaurant popular with foreigners.
Residents were anxious after health officers arrived at the hotel only to find the foreigner had left and the owners did not have his details.
The department of Health in Nakuru county activated its disease surveillance team with training set for end of this week.
Our officers had been informed of an ailing foreigner but on arriving in the hotel he had already left and no one had his personal details,Samuel King'ori, chief public health officer
Chief Officer for Public Health in Nakuru, Samuel King’ori, said they were not taking any chances since the outbreak was reported in China last month.
More than 1,000 people have died, mostly around Wuhan in Hubei Province, including others in China and a few other countries.
King’ori expressed concern hoteliers were not keeping records indicating the origin of their visitors, making it hard to find them and monitor their health status.
“Our officers had been informed of an ailing foreigner but on arriving in the hotel he had already left and no one had his personal details,” he said.
King’ori said that the county would become the first to train its workers in disease surveillance in the country.
Chinese working in area
tens of Chinese nationals are working onvarious projects in the area, including geothermal drilling and SGR.
“We shall conduct a three-day training workshop for selected health workers in the country following the outbreak in China,” he said.
Resident Joel Wahome said that since the outbreak of the coronavirus, residents had been wary of visitors.
He said tens of Chinese nationals are working in various projects in the area, including geothermal drilling and SGR.
Some travelled home to China for the lunar new year holiday and are returning now.
“The foreigner was definitely sick and due to fear of the coronavirus people fled from the hotel before he left,” he said.
In Suswa, residents have called on the Ministry of Health to investigate some Chinese working on the SGR.
Resident James Oluturi alleged that some ailing Chinese had been locked in one of the rooms in their camp for the last couple of weeks.
“We have spotted around three sick Chinese nationals locked in one of the rooms in Section Six and we are asking the government to investigate this," he said.
(Edited by V. Graham)