Nets distribution exercise in Kaapus Sub-location and some parts of Lorugum location in Loima, Turkana County has been postponed to a later date due to inaccessibility of the areas owing to heavy downpour over the last four days.
Health Chief Officer Capt. (Rtd), Augustine Lokwang’, said that the Health Department had released two vehicles to rescue the fleet of contracted trucks stuck in the mud en-route to the affected areas.
Lokwang’ added that the department has scheduled an urgent consultative meeting with the area leadership and the National Malaria Control Programme to chat the way forward.
Despite the difficulties experienced in reaching the affected areas, Peter Lomurukai the Sub-county’s MoH said that the exercise was hugely successful in all the other parts of Loima.
Preliminary results shared by Lomurukai indicated that there was more than 85 per cent turnout with a few centers recording 100 per cent as of the end of the fourth day.
Samuel Lokemer the head of Malaria Control Programme in Turkana urged recipients of the nets to begin using them immediately since the Meteorology department had warned that the current rains will persist for three more weeks.
Lokemer added that his programme will team up with the Sub county management to undertake an audit of the exercise in a bid to detect and address emerging anomalies.
Lokemer also said that all the excess nets realized after the audit will be channeled to vulnerable populations including expectant mothers, children under the age of five years and the elderly living in other parts of Turkana so as to reduce the malaria burden in the County.
By Peter Gitonga