People stranded at Busia border for lack of Yellow Fever vaccination

Hundreds of passengers are stranded at the Busia border point after failing to meet the yellow fever vaccination requirement.

Passengers coming from Uganda or going into Uganda are not being allowed to cross the border without the vaccination certificate.

Kenya is on high alert following the death of one person from yellow fever.

Passengers have been camping at the Kenyan immigration office after they were denied passage across the border to Uganda because they have not been vaccinated against yellow fever.

The wait could take longer. Speaking on phone, the Busia County executive for health said they are yet to receive yellow fever vaccines although 2000 doses are said to have been released from Nairobi.

But even when the travellers finally get vaccinated, they will still have to wait for a ten day grace period before being allowed to proceed on their journeys.

So far, ten people are reported to have lost their lives in Uganda as a result of yellow fever and the government has embarked on a mass vaccination drive to contain the outbreak.

On 16th of March, the government issued a yellow fever alert after a patient died at the Kenyatta National Hospital.

That patient had travelled from Angola which is grappling with a yellow fever crisis.

So far more than 250 people have died of yellow fever in Angola.

yellow fever is transmitted by the Eidis mosquito, the same one that transmits the zika virus. Its symptoms include;

• headaches
• muscle aches
• joint aches
• chills
• fever

And in its latter stages, a patient will experience high fever, jaundice, bleeding and eventually multiple organ failure including the heart and kidney.

The Ministry of Health has instructed that officials along border points be on the look out to ensure anyone with the symptoms is quickly spotted and put under the necessary treatment.