NYERI, Kenya, May 23 – Residents in Nyeri’s Karatina town are on high alert after it emerged two carpenters who sneaked in from Nairobi, which is under a COVID-19 containment order, had working at a workshop within the town centre.
The two managed to evade a police roadblock at Chania in Thika, northeast of the capital Nairobi which was set up to curtail movement of people in and out of the city measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus which has claimed 50 lives so far with over 1,000 infections having been recorded mostly in Nairobi and Mombasa.
Public health officials quarantined the duo on Saturday at Wambugu Agricultural Training Institute after members of public alerted police of their presence.
The owner of the workshop where the carpenters were working which manufactures coffins has been advised to self quarantine herself at home for the next fourteen days.
Confirming the incident Officer Commanding Police Division in Mathira East Thomas Baraza said members of the public were on their normal routine when they discovered the two carpenters working at the workshop.
He said that they immediately alerted area assistant chiefs and public health officers.
“When they (health officials) interrogated the duo they gave contradictory statement on how they had arrived in Karatina forcing them to make a decision to quarantine them to facilitate COVID-19 tests,” said Baraza.
Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga had in recent weeks raised alarm over a huge number of people gaining entry into the county despite a cessation of movement order aimed at containing spread of the disease which has hit more than one thousand mark.
Kahiga said roadblocks mounted to facilitate the screening of temperatures of those entering the county were reporting huge numbers especially over the weekend thus implying that many people are finding their way to rural areas despite cessation orders in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale and Mandera counties.
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe is on record urging members of public to report any suspicious individuals visiting villages in order to tame community infection owing to high number of the elderly who are most vulnarable.