As part of the measures to contain the rising cases of cholera, the Lagos State Government has told residents to avoid drinking contaminated or untreated water in their neighbourhood while they must ensure that foods are prepared under proper hygiene.
General Manager, LASEPA, Dr. Tunde Ajayi, gave the warning in an update on efforts to contain the spread of cholera.
In the update made available to newsmen on Saturday by the Deputy Director of Public Affairs of LASEPA, Adesoye Oyelami, the General Manager said a team of experts from LASEPA ISO certified laboratory have been working with other relevant government agencies such as the Ministries of Health and the Environment, Public Health Emergency Operation Centre and NGOs to bring the situation to normal.
Ajayi disclosed further that the result of the laboratory analysis for the sampled waters in some areas visited by the LASEPA laboratory team, including Odi Olowo, Mushin, Kosofe and Lagos Island LG areas, indicated that most water sources in those areas are contaminated as they contained substances that made them not safe to drink.
In the laboratory analysis presented by Ajayi, himself a professional Medical doctor, three households and one community borehole were sampled in Odi-Olowo and Kosofe LGAs on June 13, with the results not certified by scientific analysis.
According to him, the four borehole water sampled in the areas have low PH and high nitrates and cadmium, rendering their water unsafe for human health.
Ajayi stated further that two of the tested borehole water had high salinity, while one of them is considered unsafe due to high presence of microbial count and coliforms
Going further, the General Manager who revealed that the team visited Kosofe LG area again on June 19 for more water sampling because of the increasing cases of the outbreak, noted that out of the seven water samples collected: two sachet water, three household boreholes, one cart pusher’s kegs and one treated borehole water belonging to the agency, four out of the seven sampled water were not satisfactory due to high presence of microbial count and coliforms.
He added that only the two sachet water and the agency’s borehole water sampled as control were tested satisfied and good to drink.
During the visit of the team to Lagos Island LGA on June 14, the LASEPA boss disclosed that all the four raw household and one treated boreholes sampled were unsafe to drink due to low PH values.
There was also the presence of cadmium and high hardness.
Ajayi added that three of the sampled water from the area also had high alkalinity and chloride, while two other samples had high values of nitrates and manganese and one sample had Total Dissolved Solids.
He therefore warned those patronising water cart pushers, supplying water in Jerry cans to households, to desist, noting that few of those jerry cans brought to the laboratory for test indicated that some of those kegs have not been washed in recent time, thus rendering them not safe enough to fetch drinking water.
The General Manager also frowned at unsanitary behaviours of some water retail outlets who sold water to unsuspecting members of the public under unhygienic conditions.
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He noted that water reservoirs used by many borehole water outlets visited were dirty and unkept, rendering the water stored in them not safe for drinking.
In order to prevent residents of the affected areas from continuing drinking contaminated water, the General Manager disclosed that the Lagos State Government in the interim has provided water in tankers through the Lagos State Water Corporation, while those affected boreholes would be cordoned off for treatment.
“Once we analyse the samples again and they are tested satisfied, the boreholes will be released for use,” Ajayi stated.
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