Lagos records 29 deaths, 43 confirmed cholera cases

Akin Abayomi, the commissioner for health in Lagos, says the state has recorded 29 deaths as a result of the cholera outbreak.

Lagos is currently tackling an outbreak of cholera, with other states recording cases as well.

Speaking at a press briefing on Monday, Abayomi said 579 suspected cases have been reported, out of which 43 have been confirmed in the laboratory as of June 23.

The commissioner said the late presentation of patients to the hospital is responsible for the number of deaths.

“Most of these deaths were caused by patients presenting very late at a stage where we could not resuscitate them because they had severe rehydration, and many patients were actually brought in dead,” NAN quoted him as saying.

The commissioner said samples taken from the suspected cholera cases showed that some of the patients consumed some street beverages.

He added that the majority of patients talked about other forms of access to drinks, including sachet water, bottled water, and carbonated drinks, noting that street beverages were common in the state.

“It is what a lot of people consume on their way to and from work or after school. So, it’s not surprising that a few of our suspected cases referred to the consumption of a street beverage,” he said.

“However, liquid beverages are produced in batches. And once the batch is produced, it is distributed and consumed.

“So, when we go back to a particular location where they are manufacturing street beverages, we may not find anything at all because the batch that was contaminated has been completely distributed.

“My advice to the public is to check the NAFDAC number of beverages bought on the street; if they’re not certified by NAFDAC, avoid them.”

Abayomi said the state would pay attention to the source of water used by manufacturers for their production, noting that efforts are ongoing to regulate the activities of street manufacturers.

“First of all, we are trying to emphasise the fact that if you are going to manufacture anything for public consumption, you must be registered with NAFDAC,” he said.

He said the state is also conducting tests on several beverages to identify the source of the cholera outbreak, adding that currently, results are yet to indicate a particular source.