16 at Machakos school isolated after student gets virus

A Form Four student of Muumandu Secondary School in Machakos County has tested positive for Covid-19 while 16 people who interacted with him have been isolated.

Medical personnel took the student to his family at Kee village in Kaiti Sub-county, Makueni County, for home-based care.

In a letter to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), school principal Patrick Mwangangi, said four teachers who taught the boy will self-quarantine for 14 days.

“The teachers’ samples were taken for testing. Twelve students who shared classes and a dormitory with the boy were tested and put on isolation,” Mr Mwangangi said in the October 22 letter.

He added that for two days since the infection was confirmed, health officers disinfected the school and educated teachers and support staff on measures to curb the spread of the virus.

Machakos Health executive Ancent Kituku said the county has taken steps to ensure schools are safe.

So far, Mr Kituku told the Nation by phone on Sunday, Covid-19 cases have been reported in two schools in the county. He said all the patients are asymptomatic.

“I caution the public, especially those on social media, against publishing patients’ names to prevent stigmatisation and anxiety as these can lead to many other problems,” he said.