The outbreak of an unidentified disease in Gindiye community in Jenkwe Development Area in Nasarawa State has now claimed another life, a 22-year-old female student of Ipere College of Education, Agyaragu, Lydia Ezekiel.
This is coming hours after five children in the community between the ages of five, six, seven, and 15, had died after complaining of stomach aches, vomiting, and purging on Monday and Tuesday.
She died on Thursday July 08, 2024 at Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital, Lafia, taking the number of the fatalities from yet-to-be- Identified outbreak to six.
A community leader, Samuel Akala who confirmed the alarming situation, said a successful farmer, Ezekiel Agidi lost three children while another, Baba, lost two in addition to his 6- year-old Nephew, Rejoice Friday.
Akala, who is the Publicity Secretary of Migili Youth Association, MYA, revealed that the deceased children belong to the same maternal grandmother.
Meanwhile, the state Government has deployed health workers to the community following the earlier death of five (5) children.
The state Epidemiologist, Dr. Grace Tsakpa, who disclosed this said they were deployed to the community to take samples of the surviving family members.
“For now, we have taken samples from the other family members, but our suspicion is going towards food poisoning. This is because the incident happened after they ate food at the farm.
“The five children belong to two brothers. The family (parents and children) went to the farm, cooked there, and ate. It was on the farm that one of the children started complaining of abdominal pains, and he later died. The other four children also died after developing symptoms”, she said.
-9News Nigeria.
