Blantyre DHO traces 16 Covid-19 escapees

Blantyre District Health Office (DHO) says it has traced 16 out of 441 returnees from South Africa who escaped from Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre last month before receiving their coronavirus test results.

In a telephone interview yesterday, Blantyre DHO spokesperson Chrissy Banda said 11 out of the 16 tested positive for coronavirus (Covid-19). She said all are from Blantyre.

She said the DHO has put the 11 on self-quarantine to ensure they are following necessary precautionary measures.

Banda said: “Follow-ups are being done on a regular basis by environmental experts, doctors and nurses. Surprise visits are also made at times to ensure that they are adhering to precautionary measures. Communities are also helping us so the combination of such support is making it easy for health personnel.”

Banda said they have also traced contacts of the 16, adding one of them had infected seven of his family members who have since been put in self-quarantine.

“It is not everyone that tests positive who is taken into isolation camp. It depends on the agreement between the patient and health workers. When a patient is not in isolation camp, we devise strategies on successful self-isolation,” said Banda.

Last month, government started facilitating the repatriation of Malawians from South Africa and Zimbabwe following stiff lockdowns in the wake of the pandemic in the two countries.

In a related development, Banda yesterday also dismissed reports that Covid-19 patients at Kameza Isolation Centre in Chileka were on Wednesday prematurely discharged by disgruntled frontline workers who were demanding allowance arrears.

She said as of yesterday, there were five patients in the isolation centre which was fully operational and that a Ministry of Health team from Lilongwe was discussing how to address the allowance arrears issue.

On Tuesday, frontline workers at the centre threatened to let loose Covid-19 patients should the DHO fail to settle their allowance arrears.

Last month, epidemiologist Titus Divala warned that the country is sitting on a time bomb following the escape of the 441 returnees from the stadium. He predicted that the development could lead to about 164 000 cases in just one month.

But Phuka said such mathematical modelling omits interventions put in place to mitigate the spread of the virus.