Referring to Gauteng and Tshwane in particular, Phaahla said the first reported case was a 56-year-old man originally from Giyani, Limpopo, who lives in Musina.
On Tuesday, the national department of health clarified that two cases of cholera reportedly recorded in the North West were actually from Gauteng. This after the North West health department announced the province has registered two laboratory-confirmed cases in the Bojanala district municipality.
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The Mpumalanga health department has confirmed the province's first cholera death on Tuesday.
According to department spokesperson Mandla Zwane, a 73-year-old woman from Phake was admitted to Mmametlhake Hospital on May 26 after showing symptoms including diarrhoea and nausea.
“She was a known patient on hypertension treatment. [A] sample was taken and forwarded to the laboratory for [analysis]. The result confirmed the patient was cholera positive,” said Zwane.
Health minister Dr Joe Phaahla on Wednesday gave an update on the cholera outbreak.
Recent cholera incidents could be traced from the cases of two sisters from Diepsloot, Johannesburg, who had travelled together by bus to Malawi in January and returned on January 30. The cases were reported by provincial authorities on February 5, he said.
