Kenyan Bulletin has received an anonymous tip from a concerned citizen that a site supervisor in a development project contracted to Fairdeal Development and Construction Ltd has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
“A man has tested positive to Covid19 at a construction site at Bondeni in Mombasa. The project belongs to an Indian owned billion business – Fairdeal Development and Infrastructure Ltd. No tracing has taken place and the site remains open with work ongoing,” a worried citizen shared the information with Kenyanbulletin.com
“It gets worse, The man is the site supervisor. That means he’s been in contact with everyone on the busy construction site, suppliers, and above all the wealthy owners of the company,” the anonymous source added.
Yesterday, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said in a statement said that the country has confirmed 8 more cases bringing the total count to 363. This is after 3 more people from Nairobi, 4 in Mombasa and one in Kwale tested positive.
With 79 cases, Mombasa County has the second-highest number of Covid-19 infections in the country after Nairobi.
Speaking on Thursday, during the unveiling of a 54-bed Capacity Hospital at the Technical University of Mombasa, Joho said results from daily mass testing have surpassed Nairobi in terms of percentages.
Governor Joho said the mass testing exercise that began at the Kenya Ports Authority two days ago, 10 per cent of those tested have turned positive.
“Out of the 300 tests conducted at the Port, 23 people were confirmed positive for the virus and there is need for Mombasa to be under lockdown,” said the governor who has frequently called on the national government to put a stop to movement in the coastal county.
In the past three days, the coastal region has recorded a spike in infections, higher than Nairobi’s, with 12 cases reported Thursday alone.
Health workers say poor use and disposal of face masks, lack of water and recklessness are to blame.
“In Old Town, the houses are closely built and if one is affected, the neighbour is in danger. Some people are not following safety protocols to combat the virus. I believe if we follow these safety measures well, we will minimise the spread,” health worker Hawaa Mohammed said.
Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho also decried what he termed as “sheer irresponsibility and recklessness”, saying many residents still do not believe the disease is real.
Joho said Mombasa is now grappling with community transmission linking the rapid spread of the virus to businesses that are still running operational, including the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).
“KPA has over 7,000 employees and 23 are positive out of the 300 we have tested. These people live in our villages; they mingle with us,” he said recently when he opened a Covid-19 treatment centre at the Technical University of Mombasa.
It has also emerged that some residents have been breaching the dusk-dawn curfew and limits on movement. The violators have been using shortcuts and illegal routes to avoid arrest.
Coast Regional Coordinator John Elungata recently said Mwakirunge is one of the areas posing a great challenge to the police because people are using alternative routes to beat the lockdown.
