Overview
- Rhodes University reported the cluster on Tuesday, 20 October, saying roughly 109–111 students across multiple residences developed diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach cramps and that mild cases were treated on campus while severe cases were referred to hospital.
- The university and the Eastern Cape health department have mobilised a coordinated response that includes urgent water-quality testing at residences, bottled or boiled water in dining halls and extra food-safety and hygiene measures on campus.
- Preliminary tests from the university's microbiology lab reportedly showed high coliform counts, detected E. coli and found low chlorine levels in some samples but health officials stress that the link between those findings and the illnesses is still under assessment.
- Makana Local Municipality has opened a joint investigation with district and national water teams, is carrying out confirmatory sampling at multiple points in the distribution network, and is advising residents to boil or disinfect tap water as a precaution; the municipality says it has not yet confirmed cases outside the university.
- The episode has revived long‑running concerns about Makhanda’s water system after past SAHRC and Department of Water and Sanitation reports found chronic treatment and infrastructure failures, and it could prompt further public-health checks, boil-water notices or repairs depending on test results.