A man who escaped a quarantine facility in Tanzania and sneaked into Kenya was arrested on Saturday, April 2, and isolated at the Taveta Sub-county Hospital.
The middle-aged man who is alleged to have escaped a Tanzanian quarantine centre due to alleged harsh conditions he encountered, was involved in a road accident after sneaking back into Kenya.
Following the accident, he was rushed to Taveta Sub-county Hospital for emergency treatment, only for the health workers at the hospital to learn if his quarantine history later on.
He was then hurriedly transferred to a holding room and his samples rushed to Kenya Medical Research Institute (KeMri) laboratory in Kilifi for testing.
The process of contact tracing to identify all the individuals who might have come into contact with the patient since he sneaked back into the country was commenced.
“We are waiting for the results for samples sent to Kilifi. While we do, we are looking for anyone who came into contact with the patient. This is a normal precautionary measure,” Taita-Taveta County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Health John Mwangeka stated.
Former county boss John Mruttu urged residents of the border villages to be on the lookout and report cases of foreigners and local people who are crossing over to Tanzania.
“We must all work together to ensure we put our safety first. This is a time to be vigilant for all,” he reiterated.
Tanzania has the most number of confirmed coronavirus cases (480 as of May 2) in East Africa.
On May 1, 50 Covid-19 patients reportedly died in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
The entire region was taken aback on April 29 when the confirmed Covid-19 cases in Tanzania was announced as 196, the largest single-day confirmation witnessed in the region.
On May 2, Kenyans called for the closure of the Namanga border following the rise of Covid-19 cases in Tanzania, citing the high risk posed by individuals sneaking in and out of both countries.
Health Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) Dr Mercy Mwangangi, had on the same day announced 2 cases of patients testing positive for the virus in Kuria West (Migori County).
"7 cases are from Kawangware, 10 from Eastleigh, 5 from Mombasa and 2 from Kuria West (Migori County) who had recently travelled to Tanzania," she announced.
