In a tragic incident that has left the community of Torit County’s Murahatiha village in Eastern Equatoria State in shock, an 11-year-old schoolgirl succumbed to a mysterious disease on Sunday, while 37 other individuals remain in critical condition.
The situation has prompted health officials to launch investigations into the illness.
The 37 individuals in critical condition have been rushed to Torit State Hospital where they are currently receiving emergency medical treatment. Health authorities are struggling to identify the exact nature of this mysterious ailment as the afflicted schoolgirls exhibit unusual symptoms, including crying, shouting, and expressing fears of death while mentioning snakes and deceased individuals.
Murahatiha Boma Chief George Oboii expressed deep concern over the situation and called upon the government to expeditiously intervene by deploying medical professionals to investigate the cause of the alarming sickness.
“A mysterious illness has afflicted school-going children in Murahatiha. While it exhibits symptoms similar to meningitis, it has not been confirmed as such. We have confirmed 37 cases of this mysterious sickness which has killed an 11-year-old girl named Bianka Ijinga Martin,” he said. “This has never happened before and we urgently request the government’s support and medical professionals to conduct necessary tests on the affected individuals.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Paul Sebit of Torit State Hospital said medics are struggling to identify the exact nature of the disease. He noted that patients displayed symptoms resembling meningitis, including high fever and signs of sepsis.
“Upon receiving the cases, we provided support, medications, and fluids. Some patients are stabilizing but in the evening they exhibit distressing behaviors such as crying and attempting to leave the hospital,” he explained. “Their symptoms resemble those of malaria and some show signs of sepsis. We are treating them based on their test results but as of now the final diagnosis remains unclear.”
For his part, Jacob Atari Albano, the Commissioner of Torit County, said he is deeply concerned about the situation which some residents attribute to a curse. He revealed that the community has a belief that the outbreak may be connected to unpaid contractors who had previously renovated the school.
According to the commissioner, the construction company closed the school due to non-payment, and although the headteacher reopened the school without proper consultation, there are suspicions that a traditional fortune teller might have played a role in these unfolding events.
“We are currently investigating to shed light on this matter. Our priority is to identify the NGO responsible for the school’s renovation to locate the contractor,” he said. “UNICEF awarded the project to an individual and we are in the process of investigating all the implementing partners to ascertain the name of the company involved. We plan to utilize both traditional methods and engage the church, which has been providing significant assistance.”
“We are also contemplating the need for national and state government entities dealing with construction companies to reconsider awarding contracts to foreign firms,” Commissioner Atari added.