Laboratory tests on tap water in the northern Turkish city of Tokat found no contamination, Mayor Mehmet Kemal Yazıcıoğlu said on Oct. 14, as the number of people who sought hospital treatment for stomach complaints since last week passed 5,000.
Samples from the municipal network were analysed by the Health Ministry’s General Directorate of Public Health in Ankara. The mayor said the results were clean and that two further analyses the municipality had been waiting for were also negative. As a precaution, the city has raised chlorine levels in the network and will keep them elevated for a while.
The outbreak began on the evening of Oct. 9 in the city centre, with residents reporting nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
Norovirus suspected
Yazıcıoğlu said the source had not been fully determined, but experts suspected norovirus, a highly contagious virus that is a common cause of gastroenteritis outbreaks. He said case numbers had started to decline.
Governor Abdullah Köklü said on Oct. 12 that about 30 people were being treated as inpatients and none was in life-threatening condition. He had cautioned that it was too early to blame the water, and schools in the city were closed for a day so that hygiene work could be carried out in schools and public buildings.
What residents and visitors can do
Norovirus spreads easily through contaminated food and water, surfaces and close contact with infected people. Health authorities generally advise frequent handwashing with soap and water, since alcohol-based gels are less effective against the virus, careful washing of fruit and vegetables, and disinfecting surfaces in homes where someone is ill.
People with vomiting or diarrhoea should drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration, which is the main risk for young children and older adults, and seek medical help if they cannot keep liquids down or symptoms persist. Most people recover within one to three days.
In Türkiye, tap water is treated and monitored by municipalities, but many households, as well as most visitors, prefer bottled or filtered water for drinking. Public health officials collect samples when clusters of illness appear, and results are sent to ministry laboratories.
Tokat, an inland provincial capital in the Black Sea region, is known for its Ottoman-era architecture and the nearby ancient city of Comana Pontica.
Sources
- Başkan testleri açıkladı: Tokat’ın suyu temiz çıktı (Hürriyet)
- Tokat’ta hastaneye başvuranların sayısı 5 bine çıktı (Hürriyet)
Photo: Lubunya / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
