From Garba Abdullahi Bagwai in Kano
A fresh diphtheria outbreak has been recorded at First Lady’s College, Mariri, in Kumbotso Local Government Area of Kano State, with health authorities confirming 12 cases out of 313 suspected infections tested.
A staff member of the school, who spoke to journalists on condition of anonymity on Friday, said the outbreak was detected among students of the boarding school, which has a population of more than 2,000 students.
The source said officials of the Kano State Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC) swung into action on Thursday following a report of the outbreak.
According to the source, one of the affected students, who developed severe symptoms, had been admitted to the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH), Kano, while other affected students were receiving treatment within the school premises.
“They came with a Rapid Response Team (RRT), supported by officials from Kumbotso, Tarauni and Nassarawa local government areas,” the source said.
Confirming the development, the Director-General of KNCDC, Prof. Muhammad Adamu Abbas, said the agency received the report on Wednesday and immediately deployed a team to investigate the situation and contain the spread of the disease.
“We received the report on Wednesday and went there immediately for investigation and response aimed at curtailing further spread of the disease,” he said.
Abbas explained that the agency tested 313 suspected cases, out of which 12 were clinically confirmed following active case searches conducted within the school.
“We administered medication to all suspected contacts and sensitised other students on the disease,” he added.
The KNCDC director-general, however, expressed concern over the inadequate supply of vaccines, saying the school required a mass vaccination campaign to protect its more than 2,000 students.
“There is a need for massive vaccination in the school, which we presently do not have. We have to ask for more vaccines to administer to the students,” he said.
Abbas said the agency continued to receive reports through its network of Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers (DSNOs) across the state’s 44 local government areas, adding that efforts had been intensified to contain the outbreak.
He reiterated the need for increased vaccine availability, recalling that the agency had earlier requested nine million doses to support mass immunisation across the state but received only 500,000 doses.
