Mombasa starts chlorination of boreholes to combat Hepatitis A

Over 70 boreholes have been chlorinated by health officials in Mombasa County after reports that 90% of borehole water in the region was contaminated.

Over the past weeks, the coastal city has recorded 119 cases of infectious diseases including Hepatitis A.

As Mombasa County embarks on boreholes water chlorination exercise starting Saturday, five more cases of Hepatitis A- have been reported in the area.

This comes only three days after health officials in the county confirmed to have recorded 114 cases of the infectious disease.

Mombasa County Secretary Francis Thoya says the chlorination exercise intends to cover 1,000 boreholes and will continue for the next two months, in efforts to combat water-borne diseases during this rainy season.

In late March 2016, Mombasa County was on high alert after 21 cases of Hepatitis A were reported  during the Easter holiday.

Hepatitis A is a viral liver disease transmitted through ingestion of contaminated food and water or through direct contact with an infectious person, according to World Health Organization (WHO).

The disease is associated with a lack of safe water and poor sanitation and can cause significant economic loss.