The Ministry of Health (MOH) is aware of the cholera outbreak in neighbouring South Africa following the reports that this deadly disease has already claimed six lives in Hammanskraal, near Pretoria in South Africa recently. When approached for comment on Sunday Director General Health Services in Lesotho Dr. ‘Nyane Letsie told the Agency that her Ministry was fully aware of the outbreak and promised to divulge preventive measures which the ministry has undertaken to combat the spread of the outbreak to Lesotho.

The Department of Health in South Africa has reportedly urged the public to take extra precautionary measures and maintain proper hand hygiene as the country experiences an outbreak of Diarrhoeal disease and a rising number of laboratory-confirmed cases of cholera.

In a statement on Saturday, the department said six patients died after presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms in Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria, in the past few days.  This has led to more than 50 people receiving medical care at Jubilee Hospital. “Diarrhoeal disease is a common and often highly infectious condition that affects thestomach and intestines. It is a leading cause of child mortality and morbidity in the world and mostly spreads by contact with an infected person or through contaminated food and drinking water sources,” the department said.