Health officials in Ol Joroorok sub-county in Nyandarua County yesterday revealed two children aged below three years tested positive for Covid-19.

The Head of Health Services in Ol Joroorok, Cecilia Kahando said the children made contacts with pupils of Uhuru primary school that was closed on Tuesday following an outbreak of Covid-19.

Kahando, however, said their mothers tested negative.

Infection of the children could be evidence that community infection is on the rise in the sub-county.

Uhuru Primary School was temporarily closed after 16 pupils and four teachers tested positive of Covid-19.

County Health Executive John Mungai said samples from pupils were collected on Monday after 70 of them visited Nyairoko Dispensary complaining of diarrhea, vomiting and sore throat. Some had fever also.

He said that the first 50 learners visited the dispensary on Friday, but 20 more pupils visited the dispensary with similar conditions on Monday prompting the health workers to conduct the Covid-19 tests.

He said eight tested positive but the number had risen to 20 by Tuesday informing the decision to close the school.

Education executive, Ndung’u Wangenye noted that the pupils who tested positive were stable and under home based care.

Monitoring the situation

He said they will enhance surveillance in the neighbouring schools to contain spread and urged parents, pupils and teachers to follow set protocols to contain spread of the disease.

Fear gripped residents of Gichaka area, Ol Joroorok location after Uhuru primary school that neighbours them was closed after some pupils and teachers tested positive for Covid-19.

This is the first major incident of Covid-19 to be reported in Nyandarua since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country over a year ago.

A community health volunteer, Wanjau Kariuki said panic was evident among villagers after the school was closed and pupils sent home.

Education Cabinet secretary George Magoha, however, yesterday dismissed as a non-issue, call to close schools in the country following increasing Covid-19 cases. 

He said the government is doing everything possible to ensure that all learners are safe.

He reiterated that infection of about 10 learners should not affect the learning of 14 million children.

“This is not an issue at all and I have continued to encourage President Uhuru Kenyatta  to continue to bite the bullet.

If the president was not bold enough to open schools, would these children be lining up here to get scholarships to go to high schools?  he posed.