Pikitup strike: City moves to prevent a health hazard
04 April 2016
The City of Johannesburg is on high alert after a rodent was found to have plague antibodies, sparking fears of a possible disease outbreak in the wake of the protracted strike by more than 4 500 members of the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU).
The strike, which enters its fourth week on Monday April 4, has resulted in piles of rubbish lying uncollected in many parts of Johannesburg despite contingency measures put in place by Pikitup, the City’s waste management entity.
This development has led to fears that the uncollected rubbish could become a breeding ground for infectious diseases.
On Friday Johannesburg Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau announced that the City would deploy additional resources to Diepsloot, Ivory Park, Alexandra and other areas to minimise potential health risk.
“There are areas that are developing into health hazards due to illegal dumping near trading facilities, public spaces and recreational facilities. The City has prioritised the deployment of extra resources in mainly these densely populated areas that are at the highest risk. These include Ivory Park, Diepsloot and Alexandra,” said Mayor Tau.
He urged striking Pikitup workers to return to work and not hold the City and residents to ransom. An investigation into allegations of misconduct by Pikitup Managing Director Amanda Nair is currently under way.
“The inquiry into these serious allegations is being conducted by a respected and independent individual who will present the findings to the City within a month. In the meantime, I urge Pikitup workers to return to work as negotiators resolve the dispute,” said Mayor Tau.
Residents have also been urged to use a new 24-hour hotline – (011) 286-6009 – should they need to call a refuse removal truck or ask for cleaning tools and protective clothing. Professor Lucille Bloomberg, CEO of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, said a rodent tested positive for antibodies of the plague in Mayibuye in the City’s Region A. But she said this did not mean there was a plague outbreak.
“The presence of plague in an area is usually noticed when unusual ‘die-off’ of rodents occurs in a particular place. In this case, no ‘die-off’ has been observed,” said Bloomberg.
She urged residents not to touch live or dead rodents without protective gear. According to the World Health Organisation, plague is an infectious disease caused by zoonotic bacteria usually found in small animals and their fleas. It is transmitted between animals and humans by the bite of infected fleas, direct contact and inhalation.
People infected with plague usually develop “flu-like” symptoms after an incubation period of three to seven days. Typical symptoms are the sudden onset of fever, chills, head and body aches and weakness, vomiting and nausea.
Speaking at the briefing, Gauteng MEC for Health Qedani Mahlangu said: “The increase in food and water-borne diarrhoeal diseases is one of the threats that exist in the current environment in Johannesburg.”
She urged residents to help the City in its clean-up drives and use designated garden refuse sites and landfills to dispose of their waste.
“Children foraging in the rubbish could also contract these through hand contact with mucus and phlegm, which contain the bacterium responsible for pulmonary TB and other diseases of the respiratory tract. This is why the citizens need to join forces with the City in its Bold Clean-up Campaign,” said MMC Mahlangu.