Cholera deaths

The government has contained the outbreak of cholera at the Kamiti Maximum Prison which left 10 inmates dead and scores hospitalized, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka has said.

Speaking Monday at the Prison after visiting ailing inmates admitted to its Hospital and the Kenyatta National Hospital, Kalonzo commended the prisons, medical and water personnel for taking swift action to curb further spread of the highly infectious disease.

"I am happy to note besides starting immediate treatment of those affected, you have also carried out prophylaxis among the inmates" the VP noted.

The Vice President however expressed deep regrets at the lose of the the inmates saying that the government was committed to protecting the rights of all Kenyans regardless of whether they are free or imprisoned.

He announced that the government would put up a district hospital at the maximum prison, noting that the available facility was insufficient to deal with the many inmates in the prison.

The VP said tests have ruled out the prisons water system or food as the cause of the epidemic, adding that it was suspected the disease was introduced into the facility by a new inmate, who had contracted it from one of the affected estates in Nairobi.

The Commissioner of Prisons Isaiah Osugo, said that they were doing everything to contain the situation.

The government has also suspended trial of Kamiti inmates to curb further spread of the disease.