KNH: Reports on Kenya confirming first coronavirus case are fake news

KNH: Reports on Kenya confirming first coronavirus case are fake news

Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) has refuted claims rife on social media that a Chinese national had tested positive for the Covid-19 (coronavirus) in Kenya.

Through a tweet, the medical facility asked Kenyans to disregard the grapevine terming it false.

“The information circulating on social media that there is a confirmed case of COVID 2019 Corona Virus is not true. Members of the public are advised to ignore the false alerts,” the Tweet read.

 

On Saturday, reports of Kenya’s first coronavirus case hit the interwebs with a smattering of people claiming that Kenya had recorded its first case awaiting a public confirmation.

These reports were not backed by any authoritative Kenyan media.

The Ministry of Health also took to Twitter to dispel the reports saying that the two people who had been tested for the virus on Friday had returned negative results.

— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) February 29, 2020

The latest comes just a day after China Southern Airlines suspended flights to Nairobi amidst public outcry over the epidemic.

China Southern Airlines,  according to a statement from the Chinese Embassy in Kenya cancelled flights not because of the coronavirus but due to “decreasing volume of passenger flow.”

The cancellation, however came minutes after a Nairobi court ordered the suspension of all flights from China to Kenya over the coronavirus outbreak.

Justice James Makau issued the conservatory order on Friday pending hearing and determination of a case filed by the Law Society of Kenya.

The coronavirus, which emerged late last year in China and is spread mainly from person-to-person has raised fears of a pandemic that could plunge the global economy into recession.

There was major outrage in Kenya after the plane full of passengers from China landed in Kenya and the government quickly cleared the passengers ordering them to “self quarantine for 14 days.”

A statement issued by the Ministry of Health indicated that the passengers were “screened on board, cleared and advised to self-quarantine for the next 14 days.”

Tags:

KNH coronavirus kenya

Want to send us a story? Submit on Wananchi Reporting on the Citizen Digital App or Send an email to wananchi@royalmedia.co.ke or Send an SMS to 25170 or WhatsApp on 0743570000

Leave a Comment

Comments

No comments yet.

latest stories