TSHWANE residents are still not sure if they are free from cholera or not.
Annah Makgatho (57) from Portion 9 in Hammanskraal said they still boil water because they can’t afford to buy chemicals to clean their tap water.
She said her son was vomiting and suffering from diarrhoea towards the end of May 2023 drinking tap water.
"He didn't boil the water, and now we're boiling water every day.
"We don't take chances after almost losing my son," she said.
Annah said they want clean water because they can't afford chemicals to clean it.
"I'm scared of cholera. It's dangerous and it kills," she said.
Another resident, Sinah Mochekgechekge (39), said they also clean water with salt and a detergent.
"We don't have money to buy chemicals to clean water. We want the government to fix the water issue.
"We make sure our little children don't open the taps," she said.
She said they are scared they will have cholera if the water situation is not solved.
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Community leader and Sanco zonal secretary, Jeffrey Nyathikazi, said they're still shocked and want a permanent solution and clean water.
"We are not happy with government officials forever calling meetings at stadiums and halls and not attending the victims of cholera," he said.
Nyathikazi said they need the Rooiwal Treatment Plant fixed and clean water distributed to the community.
Health Departmental spokesman Foster Mohale said at least 29 people have died of cholera in Hammanskraal, Tshwane.
Mohale said the department is working with various partners to continue making significant progress in response to the cholera outbreak in some parts of the country.
"The National, Provincial and District Outbreak Response Teams have been activated. They managed to reach over 300 contacts as part of case finding and contact tracing activities which include health promotion and continuous distribution of 3 000 hygiene packs donated by UNICEF and Doctors Without Borders to households and local schools in the affected communities," he said.
He said more than 600 people with suspected cholera symptoms had been in Gauteng and the Free State hospitals.
